RA  390  . A2  M66  1913 
Moorshead,  Robert  Fletcher, 
1874-1934. 

The  appeal  of  medical 

mi  ijqi  on c 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2016 


https://archive.org/details/appealofmedicalmOOmoor 


THE 

APPEAL  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


THE  APPEAL  OF 
MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


y/  BY 

R.  FLETCHER  MOORSHEAD,  M.B.,  F.R.C.S. 


FLEMING  H.  REVELL  COMPANY 
NEW  YORK  CHICAGO  TORONTO 


PRINTED  BY 


TURNBULL  AND  SPEARS, 


EDINBURGH 


/ 


To  the  Beloved  Memory  of 

H.  STANLEY  JENKINS,  M.D.  (Lond.),  F.R.C.S.  (Eng.) 

AND 

CECIL  F.  ROBERTSON,  M.B.  (Lond.),  F.R.C.S.  (Eng.) 

WHO,  AFTER  RENDERING 

DISTINO DISHED,  SUCCESSFUL  AND  UNSPARING  SERVICE 
TO  THE  WORK  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  IN  INLAND  CHINA 
AND  DISPLAYING  TO  ALL  WHO  KNEW  THEM 
NOBLE,  UNSELFISH  AND  SPIRITUAL  CHARACTERS, 

DIED  AT  SI-AN-FU,  SHENSI, 

IN  THE  PURSUIT  OF  THEIR  DUTY,  FROM  TYPHUS  FEVER 
IN  THE  SPRING  OF  1913 
THIS  BOOK  IS 

AFFECTIONATELY  DEDICATED 


6 


FOREWORD 


The  following  pages  represent  a humble  attempt  to 
restate  the  case  for  Medical  Missions,  and  supply  to  the 
Christian  public  the  main  considerations  upon  which 
the  enterprise  is  based,  and  from  which  its  appeal  is 
made  to  the  heart  and  conscience  of  the  Home  Churches. 
In  no  way  is  it  claimed  that  what  has  here  been  written 
constitutes  anything  more  than  a general  survey  of  the 
subject.  The  dominant  idea  in  the  mind  of  the  author 
has  been  to  bring  home  to  the  Christian  consciousness 
of  the  Homeland  an  enhanced  conception  of  the  need, 
value,  and  importance  of  Medical  Missions  in  the  spread 
of  the  Gospel.  In  consequence  many  aspects  of  the  work 
have  been  dealt  with  in  outline  rather  than  in  detail, 
and  certain  phases  of  Medical  Missions  possessing  more 
technical  than  popular  interest  have  been  little  more 
than  mentioned.  If  it  should  be  found  that  these  pages 
serve  any  useful  purpose  as  an  introduction  to  a fuller 
grasp  of  the  significance  of  Medical  Missions,  then  it  is 
hoped  that  those  interested  will  seek  further  informa- 
tion from  the  writings  of  Medical  Missionaries  and 
other  experts  on  the  subject. 

In  many  cases  throughout  the  book,  references  to 
medical  missionaries  are  to  be  read  as  applying  to 
both  sexes  equally. 

The  author  is  greatly  indebted  to  Dr  Percy  J.  F. 
Lush,  Chairman  of  the  Medical  Mission  Auxiliary 
Committee  of  the  B.M.S.,  to  Dr  E.  H.  Edwards, 


8 


FOREWORD 


and  Dr  Harold  Balme  (of  China),  and  to  Dr  J.  W. 
Ballantyne,  Ex-President  of  the  Edinburgh  Medical 
Missionary  Society,  for  invaluable  suggestions  in  the 
preparation  and  revision  of  the  manuscript,  and  for 
corrections  of  the  proof.  To  each  of  those  named 
he  would  tender  his  most  grateful  thanks,  as  also  to 
Sir  Andrew  Fraser,  K.C.S.I.,  for  the  very  kind  way  in 
which  he  consented  to  write  the  introductory  note. 


19  Furnival  Street, 

Holborn,  London,  E.C., 
July  1913. 


INTRODUCTORY  NOTE 

By  Sir  Andrew  Fraser,  K.C.S.I.,  LL.D.,  D.Litt. 

I have  much  pleasure  in  accepting  the  invitation  to 
write  a preface  to  Dr  Fletcher  Moorshead’s  work  on 
Medical  Missions.  My  service  under  the  Crown  in 
India  for  thirty-seven  years,  and  the  fact  that  not  only 
my  interest  in  the  work,  but  the  duties  of  several  of 
the  appointments  which  I successively  held,  in  charge 
of  Districts,  Divisions,  and  Provinces,  led  me  to  see  much 
of  Medical  Mission  work,  seems  a sufficient  excuse  for 
my  pressing  Dr  Moorshead’s  appeal  on  the  attention  of 
those  interested  in  the  cause  of  humanity,  and  in  the 
extension  of  the  Kingdom  of  Our  Lord  and  Saviour. 

The  Lord  Jesus  Christ  Himself  healed  the  bodily 
diseases  of  men,  while  He  preached  the  Gospel  of  the 
Kingdom ; and  He  used  His  healing  power  in  illustration 
and  in  commendation  of  His  Father’s  love.  In  this, 
His  servants  in  our  Medical  Missions  follow  his  example, 
and  imitate  His  practice.  As  He  reached  with  His 
Gospel  the  grateful  hearts  of  the  sufferers  whom  His 
power  had  restored  to  bodily  health,  so  His  servant, 
trusting  to  His  promised  help  and  blessing,  preaches  the 
glad  tidings  to  those  whom  his  medical  skill  enables 
him  to  relieve. 

The  need  and  the  opportunity  for  medical  work  in 
non-Christian  lands  cannot  be  over-estimated.  Any 
man  who  has  any  experience  of  the  want  of  medical 
skill  in  many  parts  of  the  field,  and  of  the  great  suffering 
that  often  calls  in  vain  for  relief,  must  have  his  heart 


9 


10 


INTRODUCTION 


touched,  so  that  he  earnestly  longs  and  prays  for 
effective  help.  I desire  to  give  my  strongest  testimony 
— the  testimony  of  a man  whose  experience  gives  him  a 
claim  to  be  heard — in  favour  of  the  urgency  of  the  call 
made  on  the  Churches  at  home  for  medical  missionaries. 

I desire  also  to  emphasise  strongly  the  necessity  for 
making  Medical  Mission  work  as  effective  as  possible. 
Well-trained,  thoroughly  educated  missionaries  are 
required.  Every  effort  should  be  made  to  train  and 
employ  native  agency ; but  for  a long  time  to  come 
the  responsibility  for  supervising  and  directing,  and 
even  for  doing,  the  work  must  rest  on  men  thoroughly 
trained  at  home.  This  training  should  be  the  best 
obtainable  in  ordinary  medicine  and  surgery,  and  also 
in  post-graduate  work  and  research.  The  Medical 
Missionary  should  be  a keen  and  capable  doctor.  He 
ought  to  be  thoroughly  versed  in  the  language  and 
dialects  of  his  field  of  labour,  so  as  to  reach  the  minds 
and  hearts  of  those  among  whom  he  works.  And  he 
ought  to  be  effectively  equipped  with  a good  hospital 
the  best  instruments  for  medical  work  (including  re- 
search), and  an  efficient  staff.  Inferior  work  tells 
against  the  cause  ; and  the  work  should  be  the  best 
possible.  It  is  most  desirable  that  the  Medical  Mis- 
sionary should  not  be  alone.  To  enable  him  to  tour 
throughout  his  district,  or  to  take  necessary  leave, 
and  to  do  adequate  evangelistic  work,  he  requires  a 
colleague.  He  requires  a colleague  also  to  share  respon- 
sibility with  him,  and  to  prevent,  as  far  as  possible,  his 
overworking  himself  in  the  midst  of  the  pressing  calls 
upon  him.  Many  regrettable  resignations  of  Medical 
Missionaries,  owing  to  ill-health,  might  have  been 
obviated,  if  this  consideration  had  not  been  forgotten. 

The  Medical  Missionary  must  also  be  an  enthusiastic 


INTRODUCTION 


11 


evangelist,  a humble  believer  in  the  power  of  God  unto 
Salvation,  and  possessed  of  an  earnest  desire  to  commend 
the  Lord  Jesus  to  sinful  men.  He  must  never  forget 
that  he  is  an  evangelist.  It  is  the  will  of  Our  Father 
in  Heaven  that  the  infirmities  and  sicknesses  of  men 
should  be  relieved.  It  is  certainly  not  less  in  accord- 
ance with  His  will  that  they  should  come  to  the  know- 
ledge of  the  Truth  and  know  God  in  Christ.  To  this 
end  the  Medical  Missionary  should  be  trained  in  mission 
work  at  home.  And  to  this  end  also  he  should  not  be 
overtaxed  on  the  mission  field.  He  should  come  to 
the  field  trained  in  spiritual  work  ; and  he  should  have 
full  time  and  opportunity  for  evangelistic  work.  There 
are  excellent  opportunities  now  for  mission  work  at 
home.  My  experience  on  the  Board  of  the  Edinburgh 
Medical  Missionary  Society,  since  my  return  from  India, 
enables  me  to  speak  with  confidence  on  this  point. 
It  is  a fine  thing  to  have  earnest  Christian  members 
of  the  medical  profession,  like  Sir  Alexander  Simpson, 
Dr  Ballantyne  (the  late  President  of  the  Board),  his 
distinguished  successor,  Emeritus  Professor  Crum  Brown, 
and  others,  interested  in  Medical  Mission  work,  and  giving 
so  much  of  their  energies  to  it. 

In  conclusion  I should  like  to  say  again  how  strongly 
I feel  that  the  Medical  Missionary’s  work  must  be  of 
the  highest  possible  excellence.  To  this  end  I should 
be  inclined  to  advocate  concentration,  if  this  is  neces- 
sary to  secure  adequate  equipment.  It  is  easy  to  under- 
stand how  the  prevailing  and  urgent  need  may  lead  to 
dissipation  of  agency  and  effort.  But  it  is  essential 
that  all  work  done  should  be  effective  ; and  the  help 
of  those  who  love  the  Lord  Jesus  and  have  money  to 
spare  is  urgently  required. 


A.  H.  L.  FRASER. 


CONTENTS 


CHAP.  PAGE 

I.  The  Character  and  Purpose  of  Medical 

Missions 15 

II.  The  Origin  and  Authority  of  Medical 

Missions 22 

III.  The  Justification  of  Medical  Missions  . 36 

IY.  The  Need  for  Medical  Missions  . . 49 

V.  The  Value  of  Medical  Missions  . . 69 

YI.  The  Value  of  Medical  Missions  ( continued ) 93 

VII.  The  Practice  of  Medical  Missions  . . 116 

VIII.  Women’s  Sphere  in  Medical  Missions  . 139 

IX.  The  Failure  of  Medical  Missions  . . 160 

X.  The  Training  of  a Medical  Missionary  . 175 

XI.  The  Home  Base  of  Medical  Missions  . 199 

XII.  The  Appeal  of  Medical  Missions  . . 213 


13 


THE  APPEAL 
OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


CHAPTER  I 

THE  CHARACTER  AND  PURPOSE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“Christianity  never  ignored  any  part  of  man’s  nature.  From  the 
first  it  was  a Gospel  to  the  whole  man,  body  and  spirit.  It  is  in  the 
very  nature  of  Christianity  and  is  the  very  essence  of  its  message.” — 
The  late  Dr  Sydney  R.  Hodge. 

Medical  Missions  may  be  defined  as  that  section  of 
the  missionary  enterprise  of  the  Christian  Church  which 
seeks  to  spread  the  knowledge  of  “ The  glorious  Gospel 
of  the  Blessed  God  ” through  the  healing  of  the  sick. 
They  are  essentially  an  agency  that  exists  for  the  promo- 
tion of  the  Kingdom  of  Jesus  Christ  amongst  the  souls  of 
men,  and  therefore  its  purpose  is  fundamentally  evan- 
gelistic. All  else  is  but  means  to  the  one  great  end,  and 
it  is  of  the  highest  importance  that  the  remembrance 
of  that  goal  should  be  kept  constantly  in  mind. 

But  while  this  is  so,  it  is  equally  necessary  that  the 
distinctive  character  of  this  branch  of  evangelisation 
should  be  clearly  recognised.  The  work  of  Medical 
Missions  is  not  a form  of  mission  work  in  which  the  pro- 
clamation of  the  Gospel  has,  as  a mere  accompaniment, 
the  treatment  of  bodily  ailments.  It  is  essentially  a 
twofold  work  the  constituent  parts  being  blended  into 
one  harmonious  whole,  of  which  it  may  be  said  that  it 

15 


16  THE  CHARACTER  AND  PURPOSE 


is  no  crude  mechanical  mixture,  but  rather  a scientific 
compound  of  the  alchemy  of  faith.  This  is  a cardinal 
principle  which  requires  to  be  grasped  from  the  first  in 
order  to  arrive  at  a right  appreciation  of  the  enterprise. 
It  is  that  which  confers  upon  Medical  Mission  work  its 
special  value  and  significance  in  the  forces  of  Christian 
Missions,  and  enables  it  to  discharge  its  particular 
functions  in  the  spread  of  the  Gospel.  Once  allow  the 
medical  side  of  the  work  to  drift  into  a side  channel, 
and  to  be  regarded  as  an  aspect  of  the  work  which  can 
be  carried  on  apart  from  and  by  different  hands  to  the 
distinctively  evangelistic  aspect,  and  Medical  Missions 
have  lost  the  attribute  which  gave  to  them  their  special 
place  and  power  in  the  missionary  campaign.  The  key- 
stone of  the  whole  scheme  is  the  vital  bond  of  union  which 
connects  the  two  sides  of  the  work,  and  constitutes  its 
particular  value  in  the  presentation  of  the  Christian 
Gospel. 

From  the  foregoing  it  will  bo  quickly  realised  that  the 
successful  prosecution  of  Medioal  Missions  presupposes 
and  necessitates,  as  far  qs  the  human  side  is  concerned, 
all  the  knowledge  and  qualities  that  are  required  in 
skilled  physicians  and  surgeons,  combined  with  the  gifts 
and  training  which  are  called  for  in  those  whose  pre- 
dominant passion  is  to  make  known  Jesus  Christ,  and 
win  people  to  a faith  in  Him.  This  aspect  of  our  subject 
will  be  more  fully  dealt  with  in  a later  chapter,  but  we 
draw  attention  to  it  now  in  order  to  emphasise  the 
essential  character  of  the  work,  and  the  organic  unity 
which  is  the  mainspring  of  the  enterprise.  Let  that  be 
truly  recognised,  let  it  be  seen  that  we  have  here  to  deal 
with  a method  that  embodies  the  combination  of 
medical  and  evangelistic  capabilities  in  one  unique 
blend,  and  an  adequate  conception  of  what  Medical 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


17 


Missions  are,  will  at  once  present  itself  to  the  mind,  and 
captivate  the  heart  by  its  grand  possibilities.  No  more 
will  Medical  Missions  appear  as  a useful  appendage  or 
as  an  optional  department  of  a Mission,  but  rather  will 
they  assume  their  rightful  place  in  the  vanguard  of  the 
forces  of  the  Gospel. 

It  is,  however,  in  the  remarkable  comprehensiveness 
of  their  adaptation  to  the  needs  of  fallen  humanity  that 
Medical  Missions  may  perhaps  be  held  to  display  their 
most  striking  characteristic.  It  is  not  to  one  part  of 
human  nature  simply  that  they  have  an  application. 
They  touch  the  whole  of  human  need.  To  the  dead 
soul,  waiting  for  the  message  that  alone  can  bring  it 
life  ; to  the  obscured  mind,  needing  the  illumination 
that  the  knowledge  bom  of  Christianity  can  afford  ; 
to  the  diseased  body,  stricken  with  the  ravages  of 
unchecked  sickness  ; — to  all  these,  Medical  Missions 
bring  something  that  spells  help  and  healing.  Their 
ministry  is  to  “ man  as  man.”  Their  interpretation  and 
presentation  of  the  Gospel  are  so  designed  that  no  son 
or  daughter  of  the  race  can  fail  to  appreciate  the  breadth 
of  their  sympathy  and  the  largeness  of  their  purpose. 
Truly  we  may  speak  of  this  work  as  the  very  instinct  of 
humanity  impregnated  with  the  spirit  of  Jesus  Christ. 

And  when  we  reflect  upon  it,  is  not  this  that  for  which 
the  world  waits  and  yearns  ? For  centuries  it  has  been 
addressed  in  words,  even  to  the  extent  of  being  confused 
by  the  arguments  of  differing  creeds,  while  all  the  time 
there  has  been  lacking  that  practical  demonstration 
of  the  Gospel  of  Love  which  is  embodied  in  Medical 
Missions.  It  is  not  that  there  has  been  too  much  preach- 
ing, but  rather  too  little  attention  to  the  evident  physical 
needs  of  humanity.  In  the  paramount  necessity  for 
saving  men’s  souls,  there  has  been  a strange  forgetful- 

B 


18  THE  CHARACTER  AND  PURPOSE 


ness  of  the  fact  that  while  he  is  a soul,  man  has  also  a 
body.  And  thus  it  has  come  about  that  again  and  again 
the  appeal  of  the  Gospel  has  fallen  upon  deaf  ears,  or 
has  seemed  to  many  to  be  a message  which  had  only  a 
reference  to  the  life  that  is  to  come,  and  none  to  the 
physical  sufferings  of  the  life  that  is  now.  It  is  there- 
fore the  grand  function  of  Medical  Missions  to  correct 
this  mistaken  view,  and  by  their  gracious  healing 
ministry  to  add  fresh  glory  to  the  crown  of  the 
world’s  Redeemer. 

How  then  shall  we  describe  the  purpose  of  this  beautiful, 
Christ-like  ministry  ? It  may  be  said  that  Medical 
Missions  have  a three-fold  purpose,  each  strand  of  which 
is  woven  into  the  very  texture  of  the  enterprise,  knitting 
the  whole  into  one  noble  endeavour  for  God  and 
humanity.  In  the  first  place  it  is  the  purpose  of  Medical 
Missions  to  introduce  into  Modern  Missions  the  spirit 
of  Divine  Compassion,  and  emphasise  the  fact  of  a common 
kinship  in  the  great  human  family.  Of  all  forms  of 
mission  work  Medical  Missions  may  claim  to  exhibit  that 
pitying,  tender  concern  for  sufferers  everywhere  that 
found  its  highest  representation  in  our  compassionate 
Saviour.  Their  inclusion  amongst  the  agencies  of 
missions  exemplifies  the  fact  that  the  religion  of  Jesus 
Christ  cares  for  men  when  they  are  crushed,  men  when 
they  are  stricken  with  pain  and  disease,  men  when  they 
are  brought  low  and  their  worth  to  the  world  is  but  a 
cypher.  Medical  Missions  extend  a hand  to  men  when 
they  are  in  need  of  succour.  They  redeem  missions  from 
the  charge  of  turning  a deaf  ear  to  the  present  sorrows 
of  the  race,  and  show  that  of  all  men  the  Christian 
is  one  whose  creed  teaches  “ Thou  shalt  love  thy 
neighbour  as  thyself.”  Medical  Missions  take  the 
parable  of  the  Good  Samaritan  and  seek  to  carry 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


19 


out  its  moral  to  the  “ wounded  man  ” of  to-day. 
They  know  no  distinction  of  race  or  creed,  colour 
or  sex  or  age,  and  by  their  merciful  ministry  in  lands 
afar,  as  well  as  in  lands  near,  they  bring  home  to  this 
severed  and  disjointed  age  the  existence  of  a common 
humanity. 

But  this  is  not  all.  It  is  indeed  but  the  beginning, 
and  in  the  second  place  we  find  that  the  purpose  of 
Medical  Missions  is  to  pave  a way  for  the  Gospel  to  the 
human  heart.  To  exhibit  mercy  and  show  compassion  is 
sublime.  It  is  esentially  a ministry  emanating  from  the 
Divine  Being  who  is  Love.  But  it  may  begin  and  end 
in  pure  philanthropy,  and  have  no  direct  connection 
with  the  spread  of  the  Gospel,  with  which  Medical 
Missions  are  inseparably  bound  up.  The  purpose  of 
Medical  Missions  is  therefore  but  scratched  on  the  surface 
when  we  have  exhausted  their  service  in  relieving  bodily 
suffering.  It  is  necessary  that  we  go  deeper,  and  find, 
as  we  manifestly  do,  that  Medical  Missions  have  a direct, 
purposeful  bearing  upon  the  furtherance  of  the  Gospel. 
Here  we  come  closely  into  touch  with  some  of  the  most 
essential  elements  in  the  combination  of  Healing  and 
Preaching.  It  has  been  seen  already  that  those  twin 
ministries  are  indissolubly  bound  up  in  the  enterprise 
of  Medical  Missions.  We  now  see  why  there  is  that 
union,  viz.,  that  the  one  may  prepare  the  way  for  the 
other,  that  the  lesser  may  serve  the  greater,  that  the  way 
to  the  soul  may  be  paved  through  the  service  rendered 
to  the  body.  Yes,  it  is  here  that  Medical  Missions 
find  one  of  their  crowning  glories — to  win  a path 
for  the  message  of  Salvation  right  into  the  citadel 
of  the  human  heart : to  constrain,  through  their 

active  sympathy,  even  the  indifferent  and  the  hostile 
to  listen  to  the  words  of  Redeeming  Love : — all  this 


20  THE  CHARACTER  AND  PURPOSE 

and  much  more  enters  into  this  aspect  of  the  purpose 
of  this  wonderful  ministry,  and  discloses  the  Gospel 
character  of  its  aim.  If,  then,  the  first  strand  in  the 
fibre  of  its  purpose  is  noble  and  glorious,  how  much 
more  the  second  ? 

Yet  even  this  has  not  disclosed  the  finest  element  in 
the  governing  impulses  of  this  holy  service,  and  we  have 
to  go  one  step  farther  before  we  have  reached  the  zenith 
of  its  ideals. 

To  the  glory  of  God  be  it  said  in  the  third  place  that 
it  is  the  purpose  of  Medical  Missions  to  save  souls.  Not 
in  merely  showing  forth  the  spirit  of  Christianity  and 
in  leading  men  to  hear  its  message,  but  in  definitely 
winning  their  souls  for  Christ  is  the  supreme  purpose 
of  Medical  Missions  achieved.  Satisfaction  with  any 
lesser  goal  would  betray  an  inconsistency  in  the  all- 
inclusive  character  of  the  enterprise.  If  Medical  Missions 
are  what  we  have  seen  them  to  be,  then  it  is  evident 
that  they  must  find  their  highest  aim  and  loftiest  passion 
in  the  salvation  of  souls.  For  that  every  nerve  must  be 
strained.  Towards  that  every  lesser  element  in  their 
purpose  must  be  directed.  Medical  Missions  are  not 
only,  or  chiefly,  a means  to  an  end.  They  are  of  neces- 
sity the  natural  manifestation  of  a Gospel  which  is  not 
partial,  but  complete  ; and  which  establishes  a point 
of  contact  with  the  whole  being  of  man.  And 
inasmuch  as  the  spiritual  part  of  human  nature  is 
the  eternal,  and  the  most  needy,  this  comprehensive 
ministry  can  know  no  rest  until  the  thraldom  of  sin  has 
been  broken  in  the  individual  soul. 

It  is  here  that  Medical  Missions  establish  their  con- 
sanguinity with  every  other  evangelistic  effort,  and 
prove  their  right  to  hold  a prominent  place  in  the 
missionary  army.  The  quickening  of  immortal  spirits, 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


21 


the  rescuing  of  souls  from  the  drifting  sea  of  this  world’s 
sin  and  sorrow,  the  healing  of  spiritual  disease  by  the 
balm  of  the  Great  Physician,  all  find  a foremost  place 
in  the  purpose  of  Medical  Missions.  Can  there  be  any 
work  more  applicable  to  the  all-round  needs  of  humanity 
than  this  ? Is  there  anything  more  calculated  to  win 
by  the  greatness  of  its  purpose  the  devotion  of  the  saint, 
and  the  love  of  the  sinner  ? 

We  therefore  commence  the  study  of  a subject  which 
has  important  bearings  upon  the  evangelisation  of  the 
world.  Medical  Missions  obviously  possess  qualities 
that  claim  more  than  a passing  thought  from  the  student 
of  Christian  Missions.  Their  whole  character  indicates 
how  needful  is  the  contribution  they  can  make  to  many 
of  the  pressing  problems  of  the  Church’s  work.  And  as 
we  subsequently  consider  in  detail  the  various  aspects 
of  Medical  Missions,  our  hope  is  that  to  not  a few  the 
vision  of  opportunity  will  become  the  call  to  service. 


CHAPTER  II 


THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ Leaving  us  an  example,  that  ye  should  follow  his  steps.” — 
1 Petek  ii.  21. 

“ God  had  an  only  Son,  and  He  was  a Missionary  and  a Physician.” 
— Dr  David  Livingstone. 

It  is  the  genius  of  Christianity  that  its  inspiration  comes 
not  from  a creed,  but  from  a Person,  and  that  its  dynamic 
is  the  life  and  death  of  a Divine  Saviour  who  came  on 
earth  that  He  might  establish  a new  and  spiritual 
Kingdom.  It  follows,  therefore,  that  His  example  and 
life  of  service  must  ever  stand  out  as  the  supreme 
pattern  for  those  who  become  His  professed  followers, 
and  who  call  themselves  by  His  name.  Here,  if  anywhere, 
must  be  found  that  scheme  and  type  of  Christian  living  and 
serving  to  which  He  has  summoned  each  of  His  disciples. 

Now  to  no  branch  of  Christian  effort  does  all  this  more 
apply  than  to  the  work  of  Foreign  Missions,  in  which 
considerations  of  method  and  selection  of  plans  of 
working  are  essential  for  the  successful  achievement 
of  the  enterprise.  Concerned  as  is  the  Foreign  Mis- 
sionary with  the  carrying  of  the  Gospel  into  lands 
where  it  has  not  been  before,  and  amongst  peoples, 
many  of  whom  are  not  responsive  to  the  message,  the 
nature  of  his  representation  of  the  truth  is  one  of  primary 
importance.  He  rightly  seeks  to  ascertain  the  best  lines 
of  attack  that  can  be  adopted  in  coming  face  to  face  with 
the  citadels  of  non-Christian  error  and  darkness.  And  it 


22 


ORIGIN  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


23 


will  easily  be  seen  that  the  most  natural  point  to  which 
such  inquiry  leads  is  the  example  of  that  Divine 
Prototype  of  all  missionary  labour,  our  Lord  Himself. 
In  other  words  the  question,  “ What  did  Christ  do  ? ” 
constitutes  the  obvious  prelude  to  the  satisfactory 
answering  of  the  question,  “ What  should  we  do  ? ” 

We  therefore  propose  to  inquire  what  Our  Lord’s 
example  has  to  teach  concerning  Medical  Missions.  Does 
it  show  that  He  employed  the  ministry  of  healing  in 
His  work  amongst  men,  and  thereby  afford  us  Divine 
warrant  for  a similar  work  ? Can  the  claim  be  estab- 
lished that  Medical  Missions  have  a Scriptural  basis,  or 
have  we  in  this  modem  development  of  the  missionary 
enterprise  only  a philanthropic  by-product  of  the  rest- 
less Christian  activity  of  these  later  days  ? It  is  not 
too  much  to  say  that  upon  the  answers  to  these  questions 
our  whole  conception  of  Medical  Missions  must  largely 
depend,  and  we  therefore  invite  earnest  attention  to 
this  profoundly  interesting  aspect  of  our  subject. 

In  the  first  place  it  is  suggested  that  there  can  be  no 
better  beginning  to  our  present  investigation  than  a con- 
secutive reading  of  one  of  the  Gospel  narratives  of  the 
Life  of  Christ,  underlining  all  the  references  to  the  healing 
of  the  sick.  Inasmuch,  however,  as  this  may  be  difficult 
at  the  moment  to  some  readers  of  this  book,  we  give  here 
a compendium  of  all  the  references  contained  in  the 
Gospel  by  St  Matthew. 

Chapter  iv.  23,  24. — “ And  Jesus  went  about  all  Galilee, 
teaching  in  their  synagogues,  and  preaching  the  Gospel  of 
the  Kingdom,  and  healing  all  manner  of  sickness  and  all 
manner  of  disease  among  the  people.  And  His  fame  went 
throughout  all  Syria : and  they  brought  unto  Him  all  sick 
people  that  were  taken  with  divers  diseases  and  torments, 
and  those  which  were  possessed  with  devils,  and  those 


24  THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY 


which  were  lunatic,  and  those  that  had  the  palsy ; and  He 
healed  them.” 

Chapter  viii.  2,  3. — “ And,  behold,  there  came  a leper 
and  worshipped  Him,  saying,  Lord,  if  thou  wilt,  thou 
canst  make  me  clean.  And  Jesus  put  forth  His  hand, 
and  touched  him,  saying,  I will ; be  thou  clean.  And 
immediately  his  leprosy  was  cleansed.” 

Chapter  viii.  5-7,  13. — “ And  when  Jesus  was  entered  into 
Capernaum,  there  came  unto  Him  a centurion,  beseeching 
Him,  and  saying,  Lord,  my  servant  lieth  at  home  sick  of 
the  palsy,  grievously  tormented.  And  Jesus  saith  unto 
him,  I will  come  and  heal  him.  . . . And  Jesus  said  unto 
the  centurion,  Go  thy  way ; and  as  thou  hast  believed,  so 
be  it  done  unto  thee.  And  his  servant  was  healed  in  the 
self-same  hour.” 

Chapter  viii.  14-17. — “ And  when  Jesus  was  come  into 
Peter’s  house,  He  saw  his  wife’s  mother  laid,  and  sick  of  a 
fever.  And  He  touched  her  hand  and  the  fever  left  her  : 
and  she  arose,  and  ministered  unto  them.  And  when  even 
was  come,  they  brought  unto  Him  many  that  were  possessed 
with  devils  : and  He  cast  out  the  spirits  with  His  word, 
and  healed  all  that  were  sick  : that  it  might  be  fulfilled 
which  was  spoken  by  Esaias  the  prophet,  saying,  ‘ Himself 
took  our  infirmities,  and  bare  our  sicknesses.’  ” 

Chapter  ix.  2-8. — “ And,  behold,  they  brought  to  him  a 
man  sick  of  the  palsy,  lying  on  a bed  : and  Jesus  seeing  their 
faith  said  unto  the  sick  of  the  palsy ; Son,  be  of  good  cheer  ; 
thy  sins  be  forgiven  thee.  And,  behold,  certain  of  the 
scribes  said  within  themselves,  this  man  blasphemeth. 
And  Jesus  knowing  their  thoughts  said,  Wherefore  think 
ye  evil  in  your  hearts  ? For  whether  is  easier,  to  say, 
Thy  sins  be  forgiven  thee  ; or  to  say,  Arise,  and  walk  V 
But  that  ye  may  know  that  the  Son  of  Man  hath  power 
on  earth  to  forgive  sins,  (then  saith  He  to  the  sick  of  the 
palsy,)  Arise,  take  up  thy  bed,  and  go  unto  thine  house. 
And  he  arose,  and  departed  to  his  house.  But  when  the 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  25 

multitudes,  saw  it,  they  marvelled,  and  glorified  God,  which 
had  given  such  power  unto  men.” 

Chapter  ix.  18,  19,  23-26. — “ While  He  spake  these 
things  unto  them,  behold,  there  came  a certain  ruler,  and 
worshipped  Him,  saying,  My  daughter  is  even  now  dead  : 
but  come  and  lay  thy  hand  upon  her,  and  she  shall  live. 
And  Jesus  arose,  and  followed  him,  and  so  did  His  disciples. 
. . . And  when  Jesus  came  into  the  ruler’s  house,  and 
saw  the  minstrels  and  the  people  making  a noise,  He  said 
unto  them,  Give  place  : for  the  maid  is  not  dead,  but 
sleepeth.  And  they  laughed  Him  to  scorn.  But  when 
the  people  were  put  forth,  He  went  in,  and  took  her  by  the 
hand,  and  the  maid  arose.  And  the  fame  thereof  went 
abroad  into  all  the  land.” 

Chapter  ix.  20-22. — “ And,  behold,  a woman  which  was 
diseased  with  an  issue  of  blood  twelve  years,  came  behind 
Him,  and  touched  the  hem  of  His  garment.  For  she  said 
within  herself,  If  I may  but  touch  the  hem  of  His  garment, 
I shall  be  whole.  But  Jesus  turned  Him  about,  and  when 
He  saw  her,  He  said,  Daughter,  be  of  good  comfort ; thy 
faith  hath  made  thee  whole.  And  the  woman  was  made 
whole  from  that  hour.” 

Chapter  ix.  27-31. — “ And  when  Jesus  departed  thence, 
two  blind  men  followed  Him,  crying,  Thou  Son  of  David, 
have  mercy  on  us.  And  when  he  was  come  into  the  house, 
the  blind  men  came  unto  Him  : and  Jesus  saith  unto  them, 
Believe  ye  that  I am  able  to  do  this  ? They  said  unto 
Him,  Yea,  Lord.  Then  touched  He  their  eyes,  saying, 
According  to  your  faith  be  it  imto  you.  And  their  eyes 
were  opened.” 

Chapter  ix.  32,  33. — “ And  as  they  went  out,  behold, 
they  brought  to  him  a dumb  man  possessed  with  a devil. 
And  when  the  devil  was  cast  out,  the  dumb  spake  : and 
the  multitudes  marvelled,  saying,  It  was  never  so  seen  in 
Israel.” 

Chapter  ix.  35. — “ And  Jesus  went  about  all  the  cities 


26  THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY 

and  villages,  teaching  in  their  synagogues,  and  preaching 
the  Gospel  of  the  Kingdom,  and  healing  every  sickness 
and  every  disease  among  the  people.” 

Chapter  x.  1,  7,  8. — “And  when  He  had  called  unto 
Him  His  twelve  disciples,  He  gave  them  powTer  against 
unclean  spirits,  to  cast  them  out,  and  to  heal  all  manner 
of  sickness  and  all  manner  of  disease.  . . . And  as  ye  go, 
preach,  saying,  The  Kingdom  of  Heaven  is  at  hand.  Heal 
the  sick,  cleanse  the  lepers,  raise  the  dead,  cast  out  devils  : 
freely  ye  have  received,  freely  give.” 

Chapter  xi.  2-5. — “ Now  when  John  had  heard  in  the 
prison  the  works  of  Christ,  he  sent  two  of  his  disciples, 
and  said  unto  Him,  Art  thou  He  that  should  come,  or  do 
we  look  for  another  ? Jesus  answered  and  said  unto 
them,  Go  and  shew  John  again  those  things  which  ye  do 
hear  and  see  : the  blind  receive  their  sight,  and  the  lame 
walk,  the  lepers  are  cleansed,  and  the  deaf  hear,  the  dead 
are  raised  up,  and  the  poor  have  the  Gospel  preached  to 
them.” 

Chapter  xii.  10-13. — “And,  behold,  there  was  a man 
which  had  his  hand  withered.  And  they  asked  Him, 
saying,  Is  it  lawful  to  heal  on  the  Sabbath  days  ? that 
they  might  accuse  Him.  And  He  said  unto  them,  What 
man  shall  there  be  among  you,  that  shall  have  one  sheep, 
and  if  it  fall  into  a pit  on  the  Sabbath  day,  will  he  not 
lay  hold  on  it  and  lift  it  out  ? Wherefore  it  is  lawful  to 
do  well  on  the  Sabbath  days.  Then  saith  He  to  the  man, 
Stretch  forth  thine  hand.  And  he  stretched  it  forth ; 
and  it  was  restored  whole,  like  as  the  other.” 

Chapter  xii.  15. — “ But  when  Jesus  knew  it,  He  with- 
drew Himself  from  thence : and  great  multitudes  followed 
Him,  and  He  healed  them  all.” 

Chapter  xii.  22. — “ Then  was  brought  unto  Him  one 
possessed  with  a devil,  blind,  and  dumb,  and  He  healed  him : 
insomuch  that  the  blind  and  dumb  both  spake  and  saw.” 
Chapter  xiv.  14. — “ And  Jesus  went  forth,  and  saw  a 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  27 

great  multitude  and  was  moved  with  compassion  towards 
them,  and  He  healed  their  sick.” 

Chapter  xiv.  35,  36. — “ And  when  the  men  of  that  place 
had  knowledge  of  Him,  they  sent  out  into  all  that  country 
round  about,  and  brought  unto  Him  all  that  were  diseased  ; 
and  besought  Him  that  they  might  only  touch  the  hem  of 
His  garment : and  as  many  as  touched  were  made  perfectly 
whole.” 

Chapter  xv.  22,  28. — “ And,  behold,  a woman  of  Canaan 
came  out  of  the  same  coasts,  and  cried  unto  Him,  saying. 
Have  mercy  on  me,  0 Lord,  thou  Son  of  David  ; my 
daughter  is  grievously  vexed  with  a devil.  . . . And 
Jesus  answered  and  said  unto  her,  0 woman,  great  is  thy 
faith  ; be  it  unto  thee  even  as  thou  wilt.  And  her  daughter 
was  made  whole  from  that  very  hour.” 

Chapter  xv.  30,  31. — “ And  great  multitudes  came  unto 
Him,  having  with  them  those  that  were  lame,  blind,  dumb, 
maimed,  and  many  others,  and  cast  them  down  at  Jesus’ 
feet,  and  He  healed  them.  Insomuch  that  the  multitude 
wondered,  when  they  saw  the  dumb  to  speak,  the  maimed 
to  be  whole,  the  lame  to  walk,  and  the  blind  to  see : and 
they  glorified  the  God  of  Israel.” 

Chapter  xvii.  14,  15,  18. — And  when  they  were  come 
to  the  multitude,  there  came  a certain  man,  kneeling  down 
to  Him,  and  saying,  Lord,  have  mercy  upon  my  son  : for 
he  is  lunatic,  and  sore  vexed  : for  ofttimes  he  falleth  into 
the  fire  and  oft  into  the  water.  . . . And  Jesus  rebuked 
the  devil ; and  he  departed  out  of  him : and  the  child  was 
cured  from  that  very  hour.” 

Chapter  xix.  2. — “ And  great  multitudes  followed 
Him ; and  He  healed  them  there.” 

Chapter  xx.  30-34. — “ And,  behold,  two  blind  men, 
sitting  by  the  wayside,  when  they  heard  that  Jesus  passed 
by,  cried  out,  saying,  Have  mercy  on  us,  0 Lord,  thou 
Son  of  David.  And  the  multitude  rebuked  them,  because 
they  should  hold  their  peace  : but  they  cried  the  more, 


28  THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY 

saying,  Have  mercy  on  us,  0 Lord,  Thou  Son  of  David. 
And  Jesus  stood  still,  and  called  them,  and  said,  What 
will  ye  that  I shall  do  unto  you  ? They  said  unto  Him : 
Lord,  that  our  eyes  may  be  opened.  So  Jesus  had  com- 
passion on  them,  and  touched  their  eyes : and  immediately 
their  eyes  received  sight,  and  they  followed  Him.” 

Chapter  xxi.  14. — “ And  the  blind  and  the  lame  came 
to  Him  in  the  temple ; and  He  healed  them.” 

These  passages  which  we  have  now  read  are  profoundly 
significant,  and  throw  a most  instructive  light  upon 
the  life  of  our  Blessed  Lord.  Taken  together  their 
bearing  upon  our  present  subject  is  full  of  the  deepest 
meaning,  and  the  following  five  points  will  naturally 
suggest  themselves  as  very  clear  conclusions. 

1.  Jesus  Christ  was  without  doubt  a healer  of  the  sick 
and  assigned  to  the  work  of  healing  a prominent  place 
in  His  ministry. — The  truth  of  this  fact  will  appeal  to 
all  students  of  the  Life  of  Christ,  and  must  also  impress 
even  the  cursory  reader  of  the  Gospel  narratives.  Twenty- 
six  of  His  miracles  were  for  the  direct  object  of  healing 
disease,  or  raising  the  dead,  and  a further  three  were 
solely  for  ministering  to  the  physical  needs  of  mankind. 
At  the  very  start  of  His  public  ministry  (Luke  iv.  16-19) 
our  Lord  quoted  a passage  from  Old  Testament  scripture, 
in  which  His  work  as  a Healer  (equally  true  also  we  admit 
in  a spiritual  sense)  was  definitely  set  forth.  Even  when 
he  was  hindered  by  unbelief  from  doing  any  other  mighty 
work  His  gracious  acts  of  healing  were  continued  (Mark 
vi.  5.).  So  prominent  indeed  was  this  aspect  of  His 
life  on  earth,  that  in  case  after  case  the  numbers  who 
surrounded  Him  were  very  largely  composed  of  sick 
people  and  their  friends.  He  was  recognised  everywhere 
as  a great  Healer,  and  His  deeds  of  healing  were  not  the 
least  distinctive  amongst  those  signs  that  marked  Him 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


29 


out  as  an  entirely  new  type  of  Rabbi.  In  nine  instances 
He  is  recorded  as  being  “ moved  with  compassion  ” 
because  of  the  purely  bodily  needs  of  men  and  women  ; 
and  it  is  not  too  much  to  say  that  to  obscure  this  side 
of  His  wondrous  ministry  would  be  to  take  from  the 
records  of  His  life  much  of  its  attractive  beauty,  and  to 
rob  it  of  not  a little  of  its  glory.  The  “ Strong  Son  of 
God,  Immortal  Love,”  will  forever  remain  in  the  history 
of  the  world  as  not  only  a Preacher  and  a Teacher,  but 
also  a sympathising  Healer. 

2.  Jesus  Christ  employed  His  work  as  a Healer  to  give 
to  men  an  evidence  of  His  mission. — This  instructive  fact 
finds  its  most  ready  illustration  in  the  passage  where 
Jesus  answered  the  inquiry  of  John  the  Baptist.  To 
that  inquiry,  it  will  be  remembered,  Christ  took  the 
direct  line  of  pointing  to  His  deeds,  as  well  as  to  His 
words.  He  gave  John’s  disciples  a first-hand  demon- 
stration of  His  wonderful  works  of  healing,  accompanied, 
as  these  were,  by  His  words  concerning  the  good  news 
He  was  proclaiming  to  men.  He  combined  in  one  great 
object-lesson  just  the  very  constituent  elements  of  that 
ministry  which  Medical  Missions  seek  to  imitate  to-day, 
and  then  He  bade  the  eager  questioners  return  to  their 
imprisoned  teacher  with  the  evidence  afforded  by  what 
they  had  both  seen  and  heard. 

Upon  that  Christ  was  content  to  stake  the  verdict 
as  to  the  reality  of  His  mission,  and  as  to  the  fact  that 
He  was  indeed  and  in  truth  the  promised  Messiah. 
And  in  so  doing  Christ  forever  placed  a divine  seal  upon 
the  evidential  value  of  Medical  Mission  work.  He 
most  clearly  showed,  by  His  own  example,  that  if  His 
people  are  called  upon  to  give  proof  of  their  ordination 
to  the  work  of  the  great  commission,  they  should  go 
forth  not  only  preaching,  but  also  healing. 


30  THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY 


3.  Jesus  Christ  attracted  men  within  the  sound  of  His 
'preaching  and  teaching  hy  means  of  His  acts  of  healing. — 
The  remarkable  magnetism  of  Jesus  Christ  is  apparent 
directly  the  record  of  His  life  on  earth  is  read.  It  is 
one  constant  succession  of  incidents  that  tell  of  the 
thronging  multitudes  who  sought  Him  and  gave  Him, 
again  and  again,  scarcely  time  for  rest  or  food.  And  if 
we  inquire  into  the  causes  of  that  magnetism,  we  have 
surely  not  far  to  go  to  find  one  at  least.  It  must  appeal 
to  all  that  it  was  in  His  healing  work  that  Christ  exerted 
a most  natural,  yet  all-attractive,  influence  that  drew 
men  and  women  around  Him.  Sickness  was  then,  as 
now,  the  ever  recurring  fruit  of  the  fall  in  Eden.  Know- 
ledge of  disease  and  its  cure  was  but  in  its  most  primitive 
stage  of  development.  And  the  presence  of  a teacher 
in  their  midst  who  could  and  did  heal  the  sick,  give 
sight  to  the  blind,  power  to  palsied  limbs,  life  to  the  dead, 
was  a source  of  such  keen  and  such  pathetic  interest 
that  it  would  have  been  impossible  to  imagine  anything 
but  the  gathering  of  the  people  unto  Him.  The  sick 
came ; their  friends  came  to  bring  them ; others  came, 
struck  by  the  wonders  accomplished,  and  the  scenes 
that  were  presented  as  Jesus  passed  from  place  to  place 
must  have  given  the  people  cause  to  think  of  Him  as  a 
great  Physician  quite  as  much  as  a Preacher  or  Teacher. 

Furthermore,  the  wondrous  compassion  of  Jesus  was 
force  of  the  highest  kind  of  magnetism.  Think  of 
Him  as  “ touched  with  the  feeling  of  our  infirmities  ” ; 
contemplate  Him  as  “ He  saw  a great  multitude  and  was 
moved  with  compassion  toward  them  and  He  healed 
their  sick,”  and  you  are  irresistibly  drawn  towards 
this  gracious  pitying  Healer.  The  consequent  effect 
of  all  this  upon  the  spread  of  His  teaching  could  not  but 
be  significant  in  the  extreme.  The  Preacher  became 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


31 


known,  “ His  fame  spread  abroad,”  by  virtue  of  the  fact 
that  He  also  was  a Healer.  The  crowds  came  to  Him 
“ bringing  their  sick,”  because  He  could  heal,  but  once 
having  come  they  presented  the  audience  to  which  He 
could  tell  the  words  of  Eternal  Life.  And  the  more  the 
mind  reflects  upon  the  Lord’s  earthly  life,  the  more  does 
it  become  clear  that  this  striking  interplay  between  His 
preaching  and  healing  ministry  was  more  than  a co- 
incidence,— it  was  a Divine  co-ordination.  Jesus  Christ 
came  to  minister  to  the  needs  of  man  in  his  ichole  being, 
but  He  knew  that  poor  fallen  humanity  was  ever  more 
ready  to  appreciate  that  which  met  its  conscious  physical 
sufferings,  than  it  was  to  welcome  that  which  met  its 
unfelt  spiritual  needs.  He  therefore  approached  man 
along  the  line  of  least  resistance,  and  divinely  employed 
His  work  in  the  lower  realm  to  contribute  a powerful 
lever  to  His  operations  in  the  higher  sphere.  Thus  do 
we  find  how  far-reaching  is  this  Divine  method  of  Medical 
Missions,  and  how  in  using  it  to  obtain  a widespread 
hearing  for  the  message  of  the  Gospel  we  have  the  highest 
sanction. 

4.  Jesus  Christ  defined  a close  connection  between  sick- 
ness and  sin,  and  indicated  the  consequent  correspondence 
that  should  exist  betiveen  the  work  of  healing  for  the  body 
and  that  for  the  soul. — Throughout  the  Gospels  it  will 
be  seen  in  not  a few  instances,  how,  in  the  mind  of  Christ, 
there  was  a manifest  relation  between  sickness  and  sin. 
The  two  were  regarded,  it  would  seem,  not  always  or 
necessarily  as  cause  and  effect,  but  rather  as  possessing 
a close  affinity,  inasmuch  as  the  one  was  a departure 
from  the  normal  in  the  physical  and  mental  part  of  man’s 
nature,  and  the  other  a similar  departure  in  the  realm 
of  the  spiritual.  Both  were  marks  of  the  trail  of  the 
Evil  one,  and  were  indicative  of  the  necessity  for  a work 


32  THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY 

of  healing  throughout  the  whole  of  human  nature. 
When  Christ  came,  He  came  with  the  full  recognition 
of  this  fact,  and  with  the  purpose  of  procuring  and  con- 
ferring that  very  healing  which  was  needed.  But 
on  the  part  of  man  there  was  no  similar  consciousness 
of  the  link  between  sickness  and  sin,  and  Our  Lord  had 
first  to  impress  upon  man  its  existence,  and  then  to  lead 
him  on  from  that  to  see  the  correspondence  that  should 
prevail  between  the  removal  of  sin  and  the  healing  of 
disease.  Our  Lord’s  efforts  in  this  direction  are  seen  in 
various  places,  but  perhaps  the  most  prominent  instance 
is  that  given  in  the  healing  of  the  paralytic  (Matt.  ix.  2), 
where  Christ  proceeded  in  the  first  place  to  deal  with  the 
most  serious  matter,  viz.,  the  sin  of  the  soul,  and  to  pro- 
nounce upon  that  forgiveness  ere  He  went  on  to  heal 
the  body  of  its  disease.  His  process  of  action  was 
misunderstood  by  the  religious  men  who  observed  it,  and 
who,  whilst  quite  prepared  to  admit  His  right  to  heal 
the  body,  denied  His  claim  to  forgive  sins.  He  accord- 
ingly vindicated  His  right  to  do  the  latter  by  His  ability 
to  do  the  former,  and  gave  in  this  one  concrete  instance 
an  illustration  of  the  affinity  we  have  pointed  out  above, 
and  the  link  that  should  be  maintained  between  work 
for  the  salvation  of  the  soul  and  that  for  the  healing  of 
the  body. 

Here  then  did  our  Lord  afford  another  basis  for  this 
very  association  that  finds  its  modem  representation 
in  Medical  Missions.  The  follower  of  Jesus  Christ  cannot., 
as  He  could,  pronounce  forgiveness  of  sins,  but  he  is 
able  to  give  the  message  of  the  Saviour  who  can,  and 
by  conveying,  at  the  same  time,  the  boon  of  physical 
healing  to  many  a diseased  frame,  he  can  support 
and  commend  his  right  of  dealing  with  the  deeper 
needs  of  the  soul. 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


33 


5.  Jesus  Christ  in  sending  II is  disciples  upon  their 
missionary  journeys,  gave  them  a commission  to  heal  the 
sick  as  well  as  to  preach  the  Gospel. — The  point  in  our 
Lord’s  life  on  earth  when  He  sent  forth  His  disciples 
upon  a missionary  journey  of  their  own,  marks  an  im- 
portant epoch  in  the  unfolding  of  His  plans.  Up  to 
then  His  gracious  work  of  preaching,  teaching  and 
healing  had  been  His  alone,  and  His  followers  were 
only  witnesses.  But  from  this  time  onwards,  it  became 
revealed  that  His  purposes  included  a definite  place  for 
His  disciples  as  co-workers  in  the  same  blessed  ministry 
that  He  Himself  exercised.  Their  marching  orders 
(Matt.  x.  7,  8)  ordained  them  to  a like  two-fold  service, 
in  the  performance  of  which  they  would  step  in  the 
footprints  of  their  Master,  and  both  preach  and  heal. 
If  His  ministry  was  directed  to  meeting  the  needs 
of  man  in  his  whole  being,  theirs  was  to  be  after 
the  same  pattern.  And  inasmuch  as  they  could  not 
discharge  this  work  without  being  specially  fitted  for 
it,  we  find,  as  a requisite  preliminary,  that  Christ  in- 
vested them  with  the  power  of  miraculous  healing  (Matt, 
x.  1).  Thus  equipped,  those  first  disciples  went  forth 
and  preached  and  healed  everywhere. 

Now,  if  we  are  to  see  in  this  an  indication  of  the  type 
of  comprehensive  ministry  which  our  Lord  would  have 
His  Church  imitate  in  carrying  out  her  mission  in  the 
world,  then  it  is  clear  that  Medical  Missions  have  not 
only  the  sanction  of  His  example,  but  the  authority 
of  His  express  command.  There  is,  however,  one 
apparent  difficulty  which  must  be  admitted  in 
seeking  to  establish  a parallelism  between  the  work 
of  the  early  disciples  and  that  which  is  done  to-day. 
They  accomplished  their  work  by  virtue  of  a special 
endowment  of  miraculous  power,  whilst  we  to-day 


o 


34 


THE  ORIGIN  AND  AUTHORITY 


have  no  such  gift.  Hence,  it  may  be  urged,  there 
is  no  ground  to  assume  that  we  are  called  to  exercise 
the  work  of  healing  in  our  missionary  ministry.  Yet 
neither  have  we  the  miraculous  gift  of  tongues  as 
the  early  Church  had,  and  by  which  it  accomplished 
such  wonders  in  the  spread  of  the  Gospel  amongst  the 
heathen.  And  it  is  not  argued  that  therefore  the  modern 
Church  is  not  called  to  preach  and  teach  in  distant  lands. 
It  is  taken  for  granted  that  by  the  use  of  God-given 
faculties  the  same  end  can  be  obtained  through  the 
acquisition  of  languages.  Hence,  in  a similar  way, 
whilst  we  have  not  to-day  the  gift  of  miraculous  healing, 
we  can  acquire,  and  bring  into  the  service  of  the  Gospel, 
that  great  gift  of  God — Medical  Science,  by  the  utilisa- 
tion of  which  the  command  to  heal  the  sick  can  still 
be  obeyed.  As  the  late  Rev.  Dr  Pierson  so  well  said  : — 

“ The  great  Economist  of  the  Universe  works  no 
unnecessary  miracles,  and  when  human  hands  can 
roll  away  the  stone,  He  does  not  work  a miracle  to 
do  so.” 

Let  no  hesitancy,  therefore,  characterise  our  employ- 
ment of  medical  skill  in  the  furtherance  of  the  Gospel, 
but  rather,  realising  the  type  of  service  our  Lord  has  set 
before  His  Church,  let  us  hasten  to  harness  all  the  forces 
of  modern  scientific  healing  to  the  shafts  of  His  Gospel 
chariot  and  speed  forth  along  “ earth’s  paths  of  pain,” 
healing  as  well  as  preaching. 

We  have  thus  passed  in  review  the  main  outlines  of 
the  teaching  to  be  deduced  from  Christ’s  earthly  ministry 
concerning  the  place  of  healing  in  the  work  of  the  Gospel. 
The  conclusions  that  have  suggested  themselves  will, 
we  think,  appeal  to  all  as  ample  proof  of  the  Scriptural 
origin  and  authority  of  Medical  Missions.  That  in  Jesus 
Christ  and  His  life  on  earth,  we  have  the  fons  el  origo 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


35 


of  this  aspect  of  missionary  work  must  commend  itself 
to  everyone.  The  truth  of  the  words  : — 

“ It  was  the  path  the  Master  trod, 

Should  not  His  servant  tread  it  still  ? ” 

is  so  self-evident,  so  overwhelmingly  clear  to  both  con- 
science and  reason,  that  to  not  a few,  we  imagine,  any 
further  argument  will  be  quite  unnecessary.  The 
example  of  Christ  is  all-sufficient.  Yet,  if  space  per- 
mitted, a further  most  instructive  study  would  be  to 
trace  the  record  of  the  early  Church  as  contained  in  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  and  note  how  strongly  evident  was 
the  ministry  of  healing  in  the  propagation  of  the  Gospel. 
To  any  who  can  do  this  the  investigation  will  be  most 
interesting,  as  shewing  how  those  first  followers  of  our 
Lord  interpreted  His  plans  and  purposes  for  the  spread 
of  His  Kingdom.  Whether,  however,  this  be  done  or 
not,  it  is  manifest  that  we  can  invite  the  attention  of 
our  readers  to  the  other  aspects  of  our  subject,  assured 
that  in  all  their  minds  there  will  exist  a profound  con- 
viction as  to  its  Divine  institution  and  Biblical  warrant. 


CHAPTER  III 


THE  JUSTIFICATION  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ A thing  is  great  partly  by  its  traditions  and  partly  by  its  oppor- 
tunities— partly  by  what  it  has  accomplished  and  partly  by  the  doors 
of  serviceableness  of  which  it  holds  the  key.” — George  Adam 
Smith. 

The  day  has  happily  passed  when  it  was  necessary  to 
present  an  apologetic  for  Medical  Missions.  Innumerable 
results  in  almost  every  field  of  missions  have  attested 
the  value  and  importance  of  this  special  branch  of 
Christian  work.  As  a writer  in  the  “ Encyclopaedia 
of  Missions  ” wrote  some  time  ago — “ The  history  of 
Medical  Missions  is  the  justification  of  Medical  Missions.” 
And  it  may  be  taken  as  a fact,  proven  beyond  the 
reach  of  doubt,  that  the  place  of  Medical  Missions  in 
the  great  scheme  of  evangelisation  is  unchallenged  and 
unchallengeable. 

There  is,  however,  some  reason  for  question  as  to 
whether  the  strength  and  cogency  of  the  arguments 
upon  which  the  justification  of  the  enterprise  is  based, 
are  as  clearly  appreciated.  Many  who  would  be  pre- 
pared to  concede  to  Medical  Missions  a large  and  im- 
portant share  in  the  work  of  the  Gospel,  only  recognise 
in  them  a species  of  philanthropy,  whose  chief  plea  is  the 
alleviation  of  human  suffering.  Many  who  perceive  their 
significance  in  disarming  unfriendliness,  and  in  soften- 
ing prejudice,  regard  their  contribution  to  missions 
as  mainly  limited  to  the  initial  stages  of  the  planting 

36 


JUSTIFICATION  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  37 

of  Christianity  in  a new  field.  It  is  consequently  of 
some  importance  that  here  and  now  we  should  take  time 
to  consider  the  various  grounds  which  together  con- 
stitute the  justification  of  this  work  as  a missionary 
agency.  In  doing  so,  attention  is  invited  to  seven 
considerations. 

1.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  because  they  establish 
a return  to  the  Christ  type. — The  truth  of  this  fact  will 
require  no  weight  of  proof  to  those  who  have  followed  the 
line  of  our  previous  chapter.  In  that  has  been  seen 
the  ministry  exercised  by  the  Divine  Founder  of  all 
missionary  activity,  and  in  that  ministry  is  found  the 
genesis  of  Medical  Missions.  Judged  from  that  standpoint, 
it  is  manifestly  clear  that  modern  Medical  Missions  are 
“ after  the  pattern.”  They  point  backward  and  upward, 
even  as  they  go,  to  the  very  heart  of  the  whole  mission- 
ary crusade,  and  consequently  their  inclusion  in  the  great 
campaign  is  abundantly  justified.  They  approximate 
the  missionary  programme  of  the  twentieth  century  to 
that  of  the  first  century,  and  in  so  doing,  help  to  keep 
the  great  world  of  missions  revolving  around  its  central 
Sun.  By  their  constant  reminder  of  the  New  Testament 
scheme  of  missionary  activity,  they  do  much  to  pre- 
vent the  main  purpose  of  the  enterprise  from  being  lost 
sight  of  in  the  growth  of  side  issues.  From  them  comes 
ever  the  call  to  look  back  to  One  who  came  that  He  might 
heal  and  save,  and  that  look  preserves  and  purifies. 
If  Medical  Missions  did  no  more  than  this,  they  would 
receive  an  ample  vindication.  The  motto  “ Back  to 
Christ  ” is  emblazoned  upon  their  banners,  and  exer- 
cises a magnetic  influence  in  the  great  missionary 
warfare.  It  is  the  pledge  of  victory  and  the  sign 
of  conquest,  and  so  long  as  no  lower  type  gains 
ascendancy  in  the  sphere  of  Medical  Missions,  their 


38 


THE  JUSTIFICATION 


place  in  the  van  of  Christian  Missions  will  be  pre- 
eminently justified. 

2.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  because  they  'present 
to  men  a full-orbed  Gospel. — If,  as  we  have  just  seen, 
Medical  Missions  can  find  a justification  in  their  recall 
to  the  Christ  type,  they  can  also  claim  to  fulfil  a distinct 
place  in  Christian  Missions,  by  virtue  of  their  manifesta- 
tion of  that  method  to  the  world.  On  the  one  side  we 
have  the  God-ward  relation  of  the  enterprise,  on  the 
other  the  manward.  Medical  Missions  reveal  to  mankind 
how  absolutely  complete  is  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ. 
No  partial  appeal  is  made  to  human  nature,  but  one  that 
is  incomparable  in  its  proclamation  of  succour  for  body 
as  well  as  soul,  soul  as  well  as  body.  Medical  Missions 
supply  Christianity  with  the  argument  of  a Gospel  that 
has  something  to  say,  and  something  to  offer  in  respect 
to  the  state  of  the  life  that  now  is,  as  well  as  the  life 
that  is  to  come.  And  because  they  do  this,  because  of 
their  remarkable  and  characteristic  comprehensiveness, 
Medical  Missions  are  clearly  justified  as  one  of  the  most 
potent  factors  in  the  great  enterprise  of  Christian 
Missions. 

3.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  by  reason  of  their 
harmony  ivith  the  supreme  Christian  Ethic. — The  religion 
of  Jesus  Christ  in  its  totality  and  finality  is  one  that 
can  be  described  by  no  other  word  than  the  one  which 
stands  first  in  the  category  of  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit. 
(Gal.  v.  22).  Love,  and  nothing  less,  is  the  Master  key 
of  the  Gospel  of  Christ.  It  is  that  which  throbs  with 
a burning  heart  all  through  the  wondrous  pages  of  the 
four  Evangelists.  It  is  that  which  shines  through  and 
characterises  the  ethical  teaching  of  Christ,  and  is 
pronounced  by  Him  as  the  fulfilling  of  the  Law.  Love 
is  at  once  the  first  word  and  the  last  word  of  that  scheme 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


39 


of  Redemption  which  Christ  procured  by  Ilis  saving 
death,  and  which  He  has  left  to  His  disciples  to  pro- 
mulgate to  all  mankind.  Moreover,  this  Love  is  not 
an  attribute  which  is  to  govern  the  relation  of  God  and 
man  alone,  it  is  enjoined  by  Christ  as  a grace  which  is 
also  to  dominate  man’s  dealings  with  his  fellows.  The 
old  Law  that  taught  “ Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as 
thyself,”  Christ  upheld,  but  He  laid  upon  His  followers 
a vastly  harder  task  when  He  said  “ Love  your  enemies.” 
In  His  teaching  there  was  assigned  no  limit  to  love.  It 
was  to  be  a point  of  distinction  that  everywhere,  and 
in  all  times  was  to  be  the  hall  mark  of  those  who  pro- 
fessed His  Name.  To  what  a glorious  calling  do  we 
thus  see  that  Christ  summoned,  and  still  summons  His 
disciples,  to  none  else  than  a life  of  Love. 

Now,  how  very  clearly  does  all  this  bring  out  the 
obligation  that  is  laid  upon  Christians  never  to  neglect, 
or  appear  oblivious  to,  suffering  and  need.  The  cry  of 
pain  that  is  unrelieved,  the  sight  of  disease  that  exercises 
its  fell  sway  all  unhindered,  the  mute  appeal  of  those 
laid  low  in  the  battle  of  life  is,  and  must  ever  be,  a claim 
upon  the  followers  of  the  Teacher  of  Love.  To  refuse 
to  recognise  that  claim  is  to  deny  the  rule  of  the  most 
essential  feature  of  the  religion  of  Christ,  and  give 
the  lie  to  the  profession  of  faith  in  Him.  We  touch 
fundamentals  here,  and  there  are  no  middle  courses. 
The  world  aches,  and  waits  for  the  adoption  by  the  whole 
Church  of  this  ministry  of  Love. 

And  herein  we  see  how  tremendous  is  the  justification 
of  Medical  Missions.  No  far  off  approach  is  revealed 
in  them  to  this  ethic  of  the  Christian  faith.  The  closest 
harmony  is  manifest.  Theirs  is  a life  of  Love.  Dr 
Arthur  Smith’s  Hospital  motto  “ Love  in  Action,” 
might  be  the  motto  of  every  Medical  Mission.  Supreme 


40 


THE  JUSTIFICATION 


among  the  agencies  of  missions  they  stand  out  as  the 
practical  interpreter  of  God’s  Love  to  men.  Medical 
Missions  afford  the  Christian  Missionary  one  of  the 
finest  object  lessons  in  giving  expression  to  the  teachings 
of  Christ.  Rob  missions  of  their  service,  and  the  whole 
presentation  of  the  Love  of  Christ  would  be  immeasurably 
weakened.  Their  contribution  to  the  forces  of  Missions 
is  an  essential  one,  and  in  the  beautiful  harmony  that 
they  reveal  with  the  royal  law  of  love,  they  find  an  all- 
powerful  justification. 

4.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  by  virtue  of  the  obliga- 
tion of  Christian  stewardship. — No  fact  is  of  more  im- 
portance to  the  disciples  of  Jesus  Christ,  in  summing  up 
their  responsibilities  to  the  non-Christian  world,  than  to 
remember  that  they  are  stewards  and  not  possessors 
of  the  blessings  and  privileges  of  the  Gospel.  Trustees, 
not  residuary  legatees.  If  to  them  has  come  the  know- 
ledge of  the  truth,  it  has  come  that  they  may,  as 
faithful  stewards,  deal  out  this  truth  to  those  of  the 
race  who  have  not  yet  heard  it.  If,  as  inheritors  of 
the  countless  blessings  of  a Christian  civilisation,  they 
have  entered  into  a heritage  of  benefits,  whereby  life 
has  been  shorn  of  some  of  its  heaviest  crosses  and  sorest 
pains,  it  has  but  been  an  endowment  of  responsibility 
for  those  whose  lot  it  has  never  been  to  share  in  such 
privileges.  This  is  brought  out  most  clearly  again  and 
again  in  the  sayings  of  our  Lord  to  His  first  disciples. 
When  He  sent  them  forth  upon  their  first  missionary 
journey,  there  is  found  at  the  very  heart  of  His  charge, 
these  pregnant  words  : — “ Freely  ye  have  received,  freely 
give.”  It  was  as  if  He  saw  that  they  might  be  tempted 
to  hug  to  themselves  the  power  and  knowledge  which  He 
had  given  to  them,  and  forget  that  to  have  was  to  give  : 
that,  instead  of  regarding  their  function  as  analogous 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


41 


to  the  life  giving  aqueduct  bearing  its  precious  stream 
to  the  thirsty  multitude,  they  might  think  of  themselves 
as  sealed  reservoirs,  filled  to  the  brim,  but  having  no 
outlet.  And  so  He  laid  it  down  right  at  the  very  start 
of  the  missionary  service  of  His  Church,  that  the  reception 
of  blessing  was  in  order  to  the  giving  of  blessing.  His 
followers  were  to  be  channels,  and  inasmuch  as  into  them 
had  come  power  to  help  and  heal  and  save  with  a Divine 
fulness  and  wealth,  so  should  that  power  find  constant 
outflow  from  them  to  the  needy  world  around. 

Now,  the  bearing  of  this  upon  the  work  of  Medical 
Missions  will  at  once  appear  essential  and  significant. 
If,  as  has  just  been  seen,  it  is  the  very  genius  of  Christian 
discipleship  to  regard  the  possession  of  blessing  as  a 
means  to,  and  a reason  for  the  conferment  of  blessing, 
then  Medical  Missions  are  amply  and  finally  vindicated. 
Theirs  is  a service  precisely  governed  and  determined 
by  the  principle  into  which  we  have  just  looked.  In  all 
points  they  conform  to  the  law  which  Christ  has  given  to 
His  followers  concerning  the  obligations  of  stewardship, 
and  their  whole  history  is  one  concrete  example  of 
Christian  giving.  There  can  be  no  questioning  of  the  right 
and  place  of  Medical  Missions  in  the  forces  of  the  Gospel, 
while  the  teaching  of  Christ  remains  the  final  court  of 
appeal.  As  one  of  His  good  and  perfect  gifts,  Christen- 
dom has  received  the  knowledge  of  healing,  and  the  con- 
sequent responsibility  to  pass  on  that  blessing  to  the 
“ regions  beyond,”  provides  a justification,  at  once  ab- 
solute and  complete,  for  the  prosecution  of  Medical 
Missions. 

5.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  because  of  the 
necessities  of  the  race. — In  a later  chapter,  we  shall  ex- 
amine more  in  detail  the  call  of  humanity  for  this  branch 
of  the  missionary  enterprise.  It  is  unnecessary,  there- 


42 


THE  JUSTIFICATION 


fore,  to  do  more  than  briefly  refer  to  it  here.  We 
imagine,  however,  that  to  all  but  those  who  have  never 
even  glanced  at  the  condition  of  the  sick  in  non-Christian 
lands,  and  observed  the  neglect,  or  worse,  that  is  meted 
out  to  these  poor  sufferers,  the  argument  for  Medical 
Missions  that  is  based  upon  the  physical  sufferings  of 
the  race  will  appeal  with  peculiar  force.  Who  can  think 
of  the  unrelieved  disease  of  the  vast  heathen  world  and 
feel  no  sign  of  pity  stir  within  his  breast ! Who  can 
gaze  at  the  almost  impenetrable  gloom  that  settles  down 
upon  those  who  are  stricken  with  sickness  in  far-off 
lands,  and  not  be  stirred  with  the  desire  to  do  something 
to  send  a ray  of  hope  and  healing  through  that  cloud 
of  dark  despair  ! To  the  Christian,  aye  and  to  the  man 
and  woman  who  make  no  profession,  the  claim  of  a 
common  humanity  will  admit  of  none  other  than  a wide 
and  generous  recognition  of  the  work  of  Medical  Missions. 
If  across  the  seas  there  are  people  in  need  of  the  help 
that  the  healing  skill  we  enjoy  in  this  land  can  bring  to 
them,  if  further,  there  are  untold  multitudes  of  those 
distressed  folk  who,  apart  from  the  agency  of  Medical 
Missions,  stand  no  human  chance  of  obtaining  such  help, 
then  the  free  and  liberal  utilisation  of  that  agency  is 
abundantly  justified.  Medical  Missions  are  of  all  mis- 
sions emphatically  those  whose  raison  d’etre  is  resistless 
in  its  appeal  to  the  noblest  instincts  of  the  human  race. 

6.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  by  the  dictates  of 
reason. — It  cannot  be  denied  that  along  the  lines  of 
Christian  sanity  and  well  considered  reason,  there  is 
to  be  found  a very  full  and  unanswerable  justification 
for  Medical  Missions.  Hardly  can  any  branch  of  the 
missionary  enterprise  be  more  easily  defended,  or  more 
amply  supported  when  the  principles  of  logic  are  applied 
to  the  conduct  of  the  great  campaign.  Take  first  the 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


43 


obvious  fact  that  in  seeking  to  carry  the  religion  of 
Christ  into  non-Christian  lands,  the  missionary  is  engaged 
in  the  delivery  of  a “ frontal  attack  ” upon  the  forces 
of  error  and  superstition.  In  doing  so  he  is  necessarily 
placed  again  and  again  at  a disadvantage,  and  in  need 
of  something  that  will  effect  what  is  equivalent  to  a 
“ turning  movement,”  and  lead  to  the  weakening  of 
the  resistance  offered  by  prejudice  and  ignorance.  To 
withhold  that  assistance  would  be  as  opposed  to  the 
merest  common  sense,  as  to  give  it  would  be  to  comply 
with  the  soundest  reason.  It  is  therefore  clear  that  if 
Medical  Missions  provide  the  missionary  with  the 
precise  help  here  referred  to,  then  it  is  thoroughly 
reasonable  to  employ  their  service  in  the  work  of 
Evangelisation. 

This,  however,  does  not  exhaust  the  grounds  of  reason 
upon  which  the  plea  for  Medical  Missions  can  be  based. 
A second  consideration  is  found  in  the  dictates  of 
prudence,  that  urge  the  importance  of  missionaries 
having  with  them  medical  colleagues  who  can  give 
skilled  help  in  time  of  sickness.  This  must  command 
the  adhesion  of  every  Christian  observer  of  the  mis- 
sionary enterprise.  We  go  further  and  venture  to  assert 
that  there  is  no  one,  be  he  professing  Christian  or  not, 
who  will  fail  to  admit  the  justification  of  Medical 
Missions  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  lives  and  health 
of  the  missionaries.  Mere  arguments  of  economy  de- 
mand it.  There  is  not  a single  commercial,  scientific, 
or  military  expedition  that  would  to-day  be  dispatched 
to  a tropical  land  that  would  not  have  its  Medical 
Officers.  The  immense  importance  of  safeguarding  the 
health  of  the  living  emissaries  of  such  an  undertaking 
would  be  recognised  and  obeyed  to  the  full.  How  much 
more  then  is  it  incumbent  upon  those  engaged  in  the 


44 


THE  JUSTIFICATION 


promotion  of  an  expedition  that  is  conducted  in  the 
interests  of  the  souls  of  men  to  see  that  the  members 
of  the  expedition  have,  as  far  as  ever  possible,  the 
risks  to  their  health  and  life  reduced  to  a minimum. 
We  cannot  do  everything,  but  we  can  do  much,  and 
unless  we  do  such  to  the  utmost,  we  are  plainly  flying 
in  the  face  of  prudence  and  reason,  and  exposing 
our  missionaries  to  an  unjustifiable  hazard.  Medical 
Missions  are  indeed  more  than  justified  by  such  a con- 
sideration, and  to  neglect  them  is  an  omission  of  the 
greatest  moment. 

Yet  again  are  we  brought  to  another  ground 
which  gives  force  to  the  appeal  of  reason  for  Medical 
Missions.  We  refer  to  the  importance  of  caring  for  the 
native  Christians  in  the  young  Churches  on  the  Mission 
Field.  Here  we  touch  a consideration  which  has  a very 
vital  bearing  upon  the  building  up  of  many  of  those 
essential  units  scattered  over  the  field,  and  their  pre- 
servation from  relapses  into  superstition.  When  con- 
verts are  gathered  in  from  heathenism,  they  are  naturally 
cut  off  from  their  old  resorts  and  practices  in  time  of 
sickness.  As  a part  of  the  superstition  which  they  re- 
nounce, they  leave  such  behind.  But  they  do  not  dis- 
pense with  sickness,  and  again  and  again  fever  and 
disease  invade  their  homes.  Had  they  remained 
heathen,  they  would  have  sought  the  help  of  their 
medicine  men,  and  though  the  assistance  which  such 
would  give  is  too  frequently  worse  than  useless,  yet 
it  has  to  be  remembered  that  here  was  a source  from 
which  in  their  ignorance  they  fancied  they  could 
obtain  relief.  But  now  that  they  are  Christians,  to 
whom  can  they  go  ? What  is  more  natural  than  that 
they  should  look  to  the  missionary  ? But  supposing,  as 
in  so  many  cases,  he  knows  little  about  medicine,  then 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


45 


how  great  is  the  temptation  to  resort  to  their  former 
superstitious  measures  in  search  of  healing  ! And  if 
they  do  that,  how  insidious  the  encroachment  upon  their 
new,  and  as  yet  early,  faith  in  the  Christian  religion. 
Alas  ! mission  history  might  reveal  this  as  often  a potent 
cause  of  backsliding.  If,  therefore,  we  are  to  conserve 
to  the  utmost  the  faith  of  these  native  Christians,  is 
it  not  of  the  nature  of  an  obligation,  both  of  love  and  of 
reason,  that  we  should  place  within  their  reach,  in  the 
hour  of  sickness,  that  healing  skill  which  has  come  into 
our  possession  as  one  of  the  fruits  of  Christianity  ? To 
apply  Medical  Missions  to  such  an  end  is  surely  to  follow 
the  leading  of  consecrated  reason,  and  to  abundantly 
justify  this  missionary  method. 

7.  Medical  Missions  are  justified  by  their  results. — 
Up  till  now  we  have  been  concerned  with  the  examina- 
tion of  what  may  be  called  the  philosophy  of  the  argu- 
ment for  Medical  Missions.  We  have  seen  how  cumula- 
tive were  the  reasons  pointing  to  the  inclusion  of  this 
weapon  in  the  missionary  armoury  of  the  Christian 
Church.  There  yet  remains,  however,  the  question  of 
the  actual  results  that  have  followed  upon  the  employ- 
ment of  Medical  Missions, — how  far  the  teachings  of 
practice  confirm  the  deductions  of  theory.  And  here 
we  touch  rock  bottom.  It  is  not  enough  to  rest  the 
claim  for  Medical  Missions  simply  upon  analogy,  law  and 
reason.  To  enable  the  claim  to  be  irrefutable  and  to 
firmly  establish  the  justification  of  Medical  Missions,  we 
must  apply  the  most  crucial  test  of  all,  and  appeal  to 
results.  In  other  words,  to  vary  the  metaphor,  we  must 
call  into  the  witness  box,  the  voice  of  history. 

Medical  Missions  may  be  said  to  have  formed  a de- 
finite section  of  the  modem  missionary  enterprise,  for 
the  past  fifty  years.  At  an  earlier  period,  dating  indeed 


46 


THE  JUSTIFICATION 


from  the  time  of  William  Carey,  when  his  fellow  worker, 
Dr  John  Thomas,  laboured  as  a Medical  Missionary, 
and  was  used  in  leading  to  the  conversion  of  the  first 
Indian  convert,  Krishra  Pal,  Medical  Missions  have  been 
here  and  there  carried  on.  But  speaking  broadly, 
they  did  not  come  into  being  as  a distinctly  recognised 
phase  of  missionary  effort  until  well  on  in  the  last  century. 
Since  then,  they  have  steadily  increased  in  number  and 
efficiency,  and  there  has  been  a growing  appreciation 
of  their  value  and  importance.  They  have  been  em- 
ployed in  practically  every  Mission  Field,  and  by  all 
the  leading  Missionary  Societies  of  the  world.  The  ex- 
pansion that  has  taken  place  in  their  activities  has  in- 
deed been  so  great  that  actual  societies  have  been  formed 
with  the  sole  object  of  promoting  Medical  Missions,  and 
in  others  special  auxiliaries  have  been  constituted  to 
deal  with  this  department  of  work.  From  a tiny  band 
of  ill-equipped  Medical  Missionaries,  there  has  grown 
up  a small  army  of  no  fewer  than  1000,  who  are  carrying 
on  their  work  to-day  in  more  than  500  hospitals,  and 
in  over  1000  dispensaries.  Hardly  has  there  been 
any  branch  of  missionary  effort  exhibiting  more  striking 
development,  and  from  this  one  fact  alone  it  may  be  seen 
how  magnificently  Medical  Missions  have  stood  the  test 
of  experience. 

But  it  is  not  in  the  mere  record  of  great  expansion 
that  history  affords  its  most  striking  vindication  of 
Medical  Missions.  It  is  when  we  come  to  the  character 
of  the  results  attained  that  we  see  how  important  has 
been  the  service  rendered  to  the  whole  enterprise  of 
missions.  Some  allusion  has  already  been  made  in 
an  earlier  chapter  to  the  ways  in  which  Medical  Missions 
have  proved  their  utility,  and  in  later  chapters  these 
phases  of  our  subject  will  be  entered  into  more  in  detail. 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


47 


It  is,  therefore,  only  necessary  at  this  point  to  broadly 
summarise  the  practical  results  that  have  been  secured 
by  Medical  Missions.  And  what  a list  they  make  ! 
Medical  Missions  have  opened  closed  lands  to  the  Gospel, 
have  encountered  prejudice  and  hostility,  and  changed 
them  into  friendship,  have  met  indifference  and  trans- 
formed it  into  interest.  They  have  illustrated  the 
message  of  the  Love  of  Christ,  until  it  has  become  lumin- 
ous to  the  mind  of  the  ignorant  heathen  and  the  bigoted 
Moslem.  They  have  given  a new  conception  of  the  value 
of  life  to  peoples  who  had  no  sense  of  it.  They  have 
introduced  a care  for  the  aged  and  the  sick,  and  raised 
the  whole  status  of  womankind  wherever  they  have 
been  at  work.  In  a word,  Medical  Missions  have  proved 
to  be  one  of  the  most  powerful  forces  for  spreading 
a knowledge  of  Christianity,  and  to  the  population  of 
non-Christian  lands  they  have  been  one  of  the  greatest, 
elevating,  and  purifying  forces  that  have  ever  been  intro- 
duced into  their  midst.  Hence  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
witness  of  Medical  Mission  history  most  completely 
justifies  the  maintenance  and  active  development  of 
Medical  Missions. 

And  now  we  must  close  this  review  of  the  various 
grounds  upon  which  the  plea  for  Medical  Missions  is 
based.  The  astonishing  wealth  of  argument  that  can 
be  so  adduced  is  not  only  more  than  sufficient  to  justify 
their  employment,  but  is  a compelling  plea  for  their  more 
widespread  adoption.  If  Medical  Missions  can  dis- 
charge the  functions  and  attain  the  results  to  which 
allusion  has  been  made  in  the  previous  pages,  then 
assuredly  they  are  an  essential  and  not  an  optional  form 
of  missionary  labour.  It  is  self-evident  that  a work 
like  this  cannot  be  neglected  without  detriment  to  the 
enterprise  of  missions  as  a whole.  Speaking  reverently, 


48  JUSTIFICATION  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


we  may  say  that  God  has  assigned  a place  for  Medical 
Missions,  at  once  unique  and  integral,  in  His  great  plans 
for  making  the  Gospel  known  to  the  ends  of  the  earth. 
He  calls  us  to  fill  that  place,  and  thereby  hasten  the 
spread  of  His  glorious  Kingdom.  He  shews  us  how 
remarkably  Medical  Missions  can  contribute  to  that  end, 
how  immensely  they  are  needed,  and  how  much  may  be 
lost  if  we  hesitate  as  to  their  employment.  From  every 
point  of  view  we  see  pressing  home  upon  us  the  great 
claims  of  the  enterprise,  and  instead  of  having  to  advance 
reasons  in  justification  of  Medical  Missions,  it  would 
seem  as  if  the  onus  of  proof  should  rather  rest  with  those 
who  question  their  importance.  Certainly  we  may  pro- 
ceed further  in  the  examination  of  our  subject,  taking 
this  as  an  established  fact  that  the  medical  department 
of  missions  is  capable  of  the  strongest  and  most  ample 
vindication. 


CHAPTER  IV 


THE  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ He’s  true  to  God,  who’s  true  to  man.  Wherever  wrong  is  clone 
To  the  humblest  and  the  weakest,  ’neath  the  all-beholding  sun. 
That  wrong  is  also  done  to  them  and  they  are  slaves  most  base 
Whose  love  of  right  is  for  themselves  and  not  for  all  their  race.” 

James  Russell  Lowell. 

It  has  been  well  said  that  “ Destitution  is  the  greatest 
plea  for  help,”  and  certainly  if  that  dictum  be  applied 
to  the  physical  necessities  of  non-Christian  peoples, 
then  their  call  for  succour  in  time  of  sickness  becomes 
clamant  in  our  ears.  It  is  hardly  possible  to  overstate 
the  need.  Standing,  as  we  do,  in  the  full  enjoyment  of 
the  ripe  fruits  of  Christian  civilisation,  and  hardly  con- 
scious of  the  wealth  of  our  blessings  because  they  are 
so  abundant,  it  is  very  difficult  to  imagine  a condition 
of  things  in  which  some  of  the  most  essential  of  those 
privileges  are  absolutely  unknown.  Limiting  ourselves 
for  the  moment  to  the  relief  of  physical  suffering,  what 
a vision  of  distress  and  despair  rises  before  us  as  we 
picture  an  utter  absence  of  medical  and  nursing  know- 
ledge, and  beyond  that  even  further,  the  most  appalling 
ignorance  of  the  very  simplest  ideas  as  to  sickness  and 
its  cure  ! About  four  years  ago,  Professor  Dr  Martin 
Edwards,  of  Harvard  University  (U.S.A.),  visited  China 
in  the  interest  of  a scheme  for  the  establishment  of  a 
Harvard  Medical  School  at  some  centre  in  that  land. 
Upon  his  return  he  issued  a report  in  which  he  sought  to 

D 49 


50 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


bring  home  to  people  in  America  the  medical  condition 
of  China,  and  the  following  extract,  which  we  here  beg 
leave  to  quote,  will  serve  most  admirably  to  convey  a 
conception  of  the  physical  needs  of  one  of  the  greatest 
Mission  Fields  : — 

“ Perhaps  we  can  get  a better  idea  of  China’s  medical 
condition  if  we  think  of  it  in  terms  of  our  own  land. 
Imagine,  if  you  will,  our  country  of  ninety  millions  of 
people,  with  splendid  institutions  for  the  preserving  and 
the  betterment  of  public  health.  Now  in  order  to  get  a 
real  conception  of  what  China  is,  we  are  going  to  begin 
a process  of  elimination. 

“ First,  we  will  take  out  of  this  country  of  ours  all  the 
hospitals  we  have,  save  one  hundred  and.  sixty,  that  being 
the  number  that  there  are  in  China.  (There  are  almost 
as  many  hospital  beds,  however,  in  Chicago.)  Next  take 
away  every  infants’  hospital  and  every  hospital  that  is 
given  to  taking  care  of  the  mother  in  her  hour  of  need. 
Next  we  must  close  the  greater  number  of  the  dispensaries 
for  our  poorer  people  and  leave  them  without  care.  Let 
us  go  further  and  dismiss  from  every  state  and  city  the 
Boards  of  Health.  The  sewers  then  of  each  city  must  be 
filled  up,  and  all  the  various  institutions  that  are  acting 
to  preserve  good  healthful  conditions  for  the  individual 
and  the  city  must  close  their  doors.  Now  it  seems  as 
though  that  is  enough  to  take  away  from  this  country 
of  ours,  but  we  will  have  to  do  more  yet.  All  of  our 
medical  schools,  save  one,  and  that  only  established 
three  years  ago,  must  disappear.  We  will  go  still  further, 
and  take  away  from  our  ninety  millions  of  people  all 
the  scientific  knowledge  we  have  of  how  disease  is  caused 
and  how  transmitted. 

“ Then  take  this  forlorn  country,  and  pack  it  full  of 
tuberculosis,  put  it  in  every  home.  Leave  no  city  with- 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


51 


out  smallpox.  Scatter  everywhere  the  other  countless 
diseases  which  we  have  here  in  greater  or  less  extent. 
Then  place  in  the  south-east  area  the  bubonic  plague. 
See  that  no  state  of  the  Atlantic  Coast  is  free  from  the 
devastation  of  cholera.  Then  all  over  this  stricken 
country  spread  the  loathsome  leprosy.  And  when 
that  is  done,  summon  just  four  times  as  many 
more  people,  all  of  whom  desire,  as  we,  to  be 
healthy  and  strong,  and  whose  hearts,  strangely 
enough,  love  and  suffer  and  break,  even  as  ours, 
and  say,  ‘ Here  is  where  you  must  live,’  and  that 
is  China  ! ” 

Let  us  pause  and  give  time  for  this  graphic  and  terrible 
disclosure  (which  might,  with  varying  degree,  be  applied 
to  the  condition  of  many  another  Mission  Field),  to  sink 
into  our  mind.  This  is  no  attempt  to  harrow  the  feelings, 
or  work  upon  the  emotions.  It  is  simply  a recital  of 
facts,  a statement  of  things  as  they  are,  and  a revelation 
of  the  condition  under  which  millions  upon  this  earth 
are  living  and  suffering  and  dying  to-day.  Is  there  then, 
we  ask,  no  need  for  Medical  Missions  ? The  appalling 
state  of  the  sick  in  these  non- Christian  lands  arises,  as 
Dr  Harold  Balme  has  pointed  out,  from  three  causes. 
First  the  absence  of  all  sense  of  responsibility  (except 
for  one’s  personal  relatives)  which  characterises  every 
country  until  the  Gospel  penetrates  it.  Secondly  the 
superstition  and  cruelty  of  heathen  medical  methods. 
Thirdly  the  awful  results  of  ignorance  and  neglect. 
Each  of  these  factors  enters  into  the  production  of  the 
terrible  suffering  which  is  so  widely  spread  throughout 
these  dark  lands,  and  as  we  pass  in  review  the  principal 
Mission  Fields  we  shall  find  abundant  evidence  of  this 
lamentable  state. 

Directing  our  attention  first  to — 


52  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


China 

We  are  reminded  of  a Chinese  proverb  which  aptly 
shows  the  opinion  held  by  the  Chinese  with  reference 
to  their  Medical  profession — “ Medicine,  fortune-telling 
astrology,  physiognomy,  are  taken  up  as  a trade  or 
profession  (for  diversion)  by  scholars  ; the  last-named 
only  is  respectable.”  Anyone  can  be  a doctor  in  China. 
Often  a man  who  has  been  engaged  in  some  other  calling, 
and  failed,  resolves  perhaps  to  take  up  medicine.  He 
obtains  a pair  of  large  Chinese  spectacles,  buys  one  or 
two  medical  books,  hangs  out  a sign,  puts  on  a thought- 
ful expression,  and  professes  to  be  able  to  heal  the 
sick.  It  may  be  that  one  of  his  ancestors  was  a 
“ doctor,”  and  if  so  the  young  recruit  to  the  profession 
will  enhance  his  prestige  by  obtaining  as  his  share  in 
the  family  heirlooms  some  secret  prescriptions  and 
methods  of  treatment  which  may  be  his  sole  medical 
library. 

These  so-called  doctors  are  very  frequently  those 
who  have  been  previously  in  the  employ  of  Europeans 
in  China,  e.g.  as  cooks,  and  who  have  desired  to 
improve  their  position  ! A good  idea  of  the  kind  of 
anatomical  and  physiological  knowledge  contained  in 
their  native  medical  books  may  be  gathered  from 
the  following : — 

“ The  larynx  goes  through  the  lungs,  directly  to  the 
heart.”  “ The  liver  is  on  the  right  side  and  has  seven 
lobes  ; the  soul  resides  in  it  and  schemes  proceed  from 
it.”  “ The  pit  of  the  stomach  is  the  seat  of  the  breath, 
and  joy  and  delight  come  from  it.”  Great  importance 
is  attached  to  the  pulse,  of  which  there  are  supposed  to 
be  three  in  each  wrist,  called  respectively,  Inch,  Bar, 
Cubit,  the  first-named  being  closest  to  the  hand.  Accord- 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  53 

mg  to  the  pressure  exerted  it  is  held  that  the  condition 
of  certain  internal  organs  can  be  ascertained,  as  will 
be  seen  from  the  following  table  compiled  by  Dr 
Harland  : — 

Left  Whist 

Inch,  when  lightly  pressed,  indicates  the  state  of  the  small  bowel. 


„ ,,  heavily 

99 

heart. 

Bar,  ,,  lightly 

9* 

gall  bladder. 

,,  ,,  heavily 

99 

liver. 

Cubit,  „ lightly 

99 

bladder 

„ ,,  heavily 

99 

kidneys 

Rioht  Wrist 


Inch,  when  lightly  pressed  indicates  the  state  of  the  large  bowel. 


99  99 

heavily 

99 

99 

99 

lungs. 

Bar,  „ 

lightly 

19 

99 

99 

stomach. 

99  99 

heavily 

99 

99 

99 

spleen. 

Cubit,  „ 

lightly 

99 

9 9 

99 

San  Cliiao. 

99  99 

heavily 

99 

99 

99 

Ming  men. 

The  last  two  terms  are  names  of  absolutely  imaginary 
organs  ! When  disease  arises  it  is  supposed  to  be  due 
to  a dispute  between  the  twin  powers  of  nature,  named 
respectively  Yong  and  Yin,  or  male  and  female.  One 
of  their  beliefs  is  that  the  heart  is  the  husband  ( i.e . 
abode  of  the  Yong  principle)  and  the  lungs  are  the 
wife  (i.e.  abode  of  the  Yin  principle) ; if  these  two 
main  organs  cannot  be  brought  into  harmony,  evil 
at  once  ensues.  There  is  also  a widespread  and 
implicit  faith  in  the  presence  of  bad  humours  and  in 
the  powerful  operations  of  evil  spirits  in  the  production 
of  sickness. 

Chinese  doctors  have  been  roughly  divided  into  two 
great  classes — “ Internal  body  ” doctors,  and  “ outside 
body  ” doctors,  of  which  the  former  are  the  more 
numerous.  In  addition  there  are  “ eye  doctors,” 


54  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


“ smallpox  doctors,”  etc.  How  these  distinctions 
work  out  to  the  oft-time  detriment  of  the  poor  patient 
is  illustrated  by  a case  reported  by  Dr  Duncan  Main, 
of  Hangchow.  A Chinese  carpenter  pierced  his  foot 
with  an  ugly  splinter.  An  “ outside  doctor  ” being  at 
hand,  said  that  for  the  usual  gratuity  he  would  attend 
to  the  foot.  This  being  paid  the  splinter  was  promptly 
cut  off  level  to  the  surface  of  the  foot,  and  then  a plaster 
made  and  stuck  on ! The  patient  being  still  in  great 
pain,  asked  if  the  splinter  were  out.  The  only  reply 
he  received  was  that  the  doctor,  not  being  an  “ inside 
doctor,”  would  not  presume  to  remove  the  rest  of 
the  wood ! 

The  same  Medical  Missionary  relates  how,  on  one 
occasion,  a servant  employed  in  a mission  house  left 
suddenly,  because  his  grandfather,  who  was  a native 
doctor,  had  died,  and  he  was  to  take  up  his  practice  at 
once.  Within  twenty-four  hours  the  erst-while  servant 
had  donned  a new  silk  coat,  cloth  waistcoat  and  pea- 
green  trousers,  and  with  the  addition  of  spectacles, 
was  the  fully  fledged  doctor ! Imagine  such  men 
called  to  the  bedside  of  the  sick  ; and  it  is  easy  to  realise 
how  grievous  is  the  plight  of  the  latter  ! 

These  sad  instances  of  Chinese  medical  ignorance 
leads  us  on  to  touch  for  a moment  upon  their  pharma- 
cology and  surgery  which,  it  will  not  be  surprising  to 
learn,  reveals  equally  an  utter  lack  of  any  scientific 
knowledge.  The  most  that  can  be  said  in  the  matter 
of  their  drugs  is  that  “ they  possess  some  knowledge 
of  herbs,  of  which  it  is  only  fair  to  say  there  is  a con- 
siderable field  for  research.”  In  addition  to  herbs, 
Chinese  physicians  employ  to  a great  extent  animal 
products,  such  as  dried  snake  skins,  deer  horns,  and 
tiger  bones.  The  following  example  of  their  prescrip- 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  55 

tions  will  not,  we  think,  inspire  a desire  to  seek  their 


treatment : — 

“ Powdered  snakes  . 2 parts. 

“ Wasps  and  their  nests  . 1 part. 

“ Centipedes  G parts. 

“ Scorpions  ...  4 parts. 

“ Toads  ...  20  parts. 


“ To  be  mixed  with  honey  and  made  into  small  pills. 
One  to  be  taken  four  times  a day.” 

The  most  popular  tonic  is  tiger  bones,  taken  either  as 
pills  or  tincture,  the  argument  being  that  as  the  tiger  is 
a very  strong  animal,  and  the  bones  the  strongest  part, 
what  is  made  from  them  must  be  strengthening ! It  is, 
however,  in  the  direction  of  surgery  that  Chinese  doctors 
exhibit  the  greatest  ignorance  and  practice  the  most  shock- 
ing methods  of  treatment.  Their  books  on  surgery  teach 
that  there  are  three  hundred  and  sixty  places  in  the  human 
body  into  which  “needles”  can  be  inserted  without  harm. 
These  needles,  it  should  be  added,  are  used  hot  or  cold 
and  without  the  slightest  idea  as  to  cleanliness.  Often 
they  are  very  dirty,  and  too  frequently,  alas,  communi- 
cate disease  rather  than  cure  it.  Some  of  the  places 
above  referred  to  are  in  the  neighbourhood  of  big  joints, 
in  the  region  of  the  stomach,  and  around  the  eyeball ! 
The  idea  is  that  by  making  these  stabs,  the  “ wind  or 
humour  ” will  be  let  out ! Sad  indeed  is  it  to  relate 
that  many  a poor  Chinaman  has  lost  his  eyesight,  his 
hearing  and  the  use  of  his  joints,  if  not  worse,  through 
such  mal-treatment.  For  indigestion,  the  treatment 
has  often  been  to  insert  a needle  into  the  stomach  and 
blister  round  the  hole  thus  caused.  Verily  counter 
irritation  with  a vengeance  ! For  headache,  alas,  the 
drum  of  the  ear  has  not  infrequently  been  punctured. 


56  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Another  lamentable  example  of  the  absolute  lack 
of  any  knowledge  of  surgical  pathology  is  afforded  by 
the  frequent  treatment  prescribed  for  an  abscess.  This 
is  the  application  of  black  pitch  plasters,  which,  instead 
of  allowing  the  discharge  to  escape,  prevent  its  doing  so. 
The  result  is  that  the  pus  burrows  underneath,  entail- 
ing widespread  destruction  of  the  tissues,  and  in  the 
end  often  the  loss  of  a part.  If  the  discharge  tries  to 
escape  at  another  point,  promptly  fresh  plasters  are 
applied. 

The  treatment  of  eye  diseases  gives  yet  a further  in- 
stance of  this  terrible  “ surgery  ” ! Blindness  in  China  is 
very  great,  and,  in  the  vast  majority  of  cases,  might  have 
been  prevented  had  the  simplest  care  been  given  in 
infancy  and  childhood.  For  cataract,  Chinese  surgeons 
will  frequently  insert  a dirty  needle  into  the  opaque 
lens,  with  the  idea  of  letting  in  the  sight.  Ulcers  on  the 
front  of  the  eye  have  actually  been  scraped  with  crude 
and  dirty  instruments,  and  the  opaque  parts  clipped  with 
scissors  ! 

In  all  this  appalling  quackery,  superstition  takes  a 
very  prominent  place,  and  is  responsible  for  much  of 
the  absurd  and  debasing  practices  that  are  carried  on 
in  the  search  for  healing.  One  of  the  idols  worshipped 
by  the  Chinese  is  a god  of  medicine,  and  sometimes  his 
help  is  solicited  in  the  following  manner — A friend  of  the 
patient  will  go  to  the  temple,  and  after  he  has  tickled 
the  god’s  ear  “ to  arouse  him,”  the  part  of  the  image  that 
corresponds  to  the  part  affected  in  the  patient  will  be 
rubbed,  in  order  that  the  god  may  know  exactly  the  seat 
of  the  disease,  and  where  his  help  is  required.  Incense 
and  candles  will  then  be  burnt  before  the  idol,  and  the 
friend  will  return  home  carrying  with  him  some  of  the 
ashes  left  in  the  censer  which  stands  before  the  idol. 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


57 


At  other  times  the  method  employed  will  be  that  ob- 
served by  Professor  Dr  Martyn  Edwards,  at  Foochow, 
and  which  he  describes  in  the  following  words  : — 

“ Foochow  has  a god  which  is  known  all  over  the 
entire  province,  this  god  being  able,  so  a sign  outside 
the  temple  says,  to  cure  ‘ every  disease  known  to  the 
human  race.’  In  this  temple  I saw  a woman  who  seemed 
to  be  in  the  last  stage  of  tuberculosis.  She  came  in  and 
kowtowed  before  the  god,  and  then  took  from  a small 
bowl  a rod  with  a certain  number  on  it.  Then  kowtowing 
again,  she  picked  up  two  pieces  of  bamboo  root,  with 
one  side  flat  and  one  round,  threw  them  up  in  the  air, 
bowed  her  head  to  the  ground,  and  then  looked  at  the 
bamboo  roots  as  they  had  fallen  to  the  ground.  They 
had  fallen,  she  saw,  the  smooth  side  up.  That  shewed 
that  the  number  she  had  chosen  was  wrong.  So  she 
chose  another  number,  then  again  kowtowed  and  prayed, 
and  threw  the  roots  up  in  the  air.  They  came  down 
one  flat  and  one  round.  That  was  the  right  number  ! 
She  turned  to  the  priest,  handed  him  the  number  and 
paid  him  some  money.  He  drew  out  prescription 
number  13  from  the  drawer,  and  gave  it  to  her  to  have 
filled  at  the  drug  store.  This  surely  would  cure  her, 
for  had  not  the  god  shown  her  the  right  number  ! Such 
are  the  conditions  found  all  about  China  to-day.” 

And  so  we  might  proceed,  citing  instances  ad  nauseam 
of  the  degree  in  which  superstition  enters  into  the  con- 
ception of  the  Chinese  in  regard  to  sickness.  Charms, 
weird  incantations  and  ceremonies,  in  which  Taoist 
priests  take  a large  share,  all  are  supposed  to  be  effica- 
cious in  ridding  the  sick  person  of  one  or  other  of 
the  malignant  spirits  which  are  believed  to  have 
occasioned  the  sickness.  Veritably  a terrible  nightmare 
of  superstition  ! Truly  the  very  shades  of  the  Evil 


58  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


One  ! And  in  the  midst  of  it  all,  sad  indeed  is  it  to 
remember  there  are  sinking  into  their  graves  in  China 
thousands  of  lives  every  day,  numbers  of  whom  might 
never  have  died  if  only  they  had  had  proper  treatment. 
Is  there  not  a need,  we  ask  again,  for  Medical  Missions  ? 

It  is  only  right,  however,  that  mention  should  here  be 
made  of  the  fact  that  the  present  Chinese  Government 
are  now  endeavouring  to  found  Medical  Schools,  and  to 
raise  up  a new  and  scientifically  trained  race  of  doctors. 
Quite  recently  a China  Medical  Association  has  been 
formed  in  China  “ composed  of  all  Chinese  properly 
qualified  medical  men  at  home  and  abroad.”  We 
rejoice  at  these  signs  of  progress,  and  wish  every  success 
to  the  attempt  to  promote  true  medical  knowledge. 
At  present  the  chief  difficulty  lies  in  the  absence  of  suit- 
able teachers  ; and  the  existence  of  this  vital  deficiency 
lays  upon  the  Christian  Church  a great  opportunity  and 
a serious  responsibility. 

Turning  from  China,  we  take  up  another  of  the  great 
Mission  Fields  of  the  world,  and  prosecute  an  inquiry 
into  the  need  of 


India 

for  Medical  Missions.  Here  we  touch  British  territory, 
and  are  reminded  at  the  outset  of  the  large  and  bene- 
ficient  efforts  put  forth  by  the  Indian  Government  in 
seeking  to  confer  medical  benefits  upon  the  people  of 
that  great  Dependency.  Nothing  but  praise  and  ad- 
miration can  be  given  for  what  has  thus  been  done. 
Would  that  all  governments,  who  are  called  to  rule 
subject  races,  recognised  a like  responsibility  in  the  pro- 
vision of  healing  for  the  sick.  But  when  all  that  has 
been  said  the  sorrowful  fact  remains  that  this  medical 
work  of  the  Indian  Government  is  only  meeting  the 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  59 


needs  of  a percentage,  and  that  not  a high  one,  of  the 
population  of  the  Empire.  Some  years  ago  it 
was  estimated  by  Sir  William  Moore  that  “ not 
five  per  cent,  of  the  population  is  reached  by  the 
present  system  of  medical  aid.”  Hidden  away  in 
densely  populated  village  areas,  living  their  separate 
existences  remote  from  the  touch  of  western  civilisation, 
and  only  here  and  there  coming  within  the  range  of  some 
government  hospital  or  dispensary,  these,  our  fellow 
subjects  of  the  British  Crown,  present  a field  that  is,  as 
we  shall  see  later,  full  of  the  most  crying  need  for  Medical 
Missions.  It  was  recently  stated  by  Dr  W.  J. 
Wanless,  of  India,  in  the  “ International  Review  of 
Missions,”  that  “ in  Calcutta,  the  largest  medical 
centre  in  India,  6000  persons  die  annually  without 
medical  relief  ” ; and  that  “ ninety  out  of  every 
hundred  who  die  in  the  smaller  villages  of  India  (and 
India  is  a nation  of  villages)  die  unattended  by  a 
qualified,  or  even  a partially  qualified,  physician.” 
It  is  not  that  the  Indian  Government  is  insensi- 
tive to  the  necessity  for  Medical  help  ; it  is  rather  that 
the  need  is  so  tremendous  and  extensive  that  there 
is  a call  of  the  greatest  urgency  for  all  the  additional 
help  that  Medical  Missions  can  afford. 

This  call  comes  to  us  first  of  all  because  of  the  extra- 
ordinary ignorance  that  is  everywhere  met  with  in  regard 
to  the  cause  of  sickness,  an  ignorance  that  is  saturated 
through  and  through  with  dense  superstition.  To  the 
Hindu,  the  presence  of  disease  means  that  some  god 
has  been  offended,  and  that  the  only  way  whereby  a 
cure  can  be  affected  lies  in  propitiating  the  deity.  Or 
again,  as  in  China,  the  cause  is  attributed  to  some  evil 
spirit  which  has  taken  possession  of  the  patient,  and 
which  consequently  renders  the  sufferer  an  object  of 


60  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


dread  and  the  subject  of  neglect  rather  than  of  care. 
When  in  India  some  years  ago  the  author  well  re- 
members being  shewn  coloured  stones  and  other  objects 
that  were  worshipped  in  villages  as  the  “ Gods  of  sick- 
ness.” One  of  the  most  widely  worshipped  female 
deities  is  the  goddess  of  smallpox,  which  is  addressed 
commonly  as  “ Mother.”  Some  years  ago,  during  an 
epidemic  of  the  disease,  it  was  said  that  the  goddess 
had  a thorn  in  her  toe,  and  until  it  was  out  the  epidemic 
would  not  be  stayed ! To  propitiate  her  wrath  and 
hasten  the  cure,  offerings  must  be  made  at  her  shrines, 
and  processions  held  in  her  honour,  in  which,  alas, 
patients  are  often  carried  ! 

The  old  time  native  doctors  or  “hakims”  still  carry  on 
their  ignorant  and  nefarious  work  amongst  the  credulous 
and  suffering  people.  These  men  are,  it  is  needless  to 
say,  quite  untrained,  and  though  at  times  they  may 
have  some  knowledge  of  useful  herbal  medicines,  yet 
as  a whole  their  practice  is  sheer  quackery,  mingled  with 
the  grossest  superstition.  In  many  cases  the  “ pro- 
fession descends  ” from  father  to  son,  and  a common 
proverb  amongst  the  people  runs,  “ He  who  has  killed  a 
thousand  people  is  only  half  a doctor.”  Charms  form  a 
large  part  of  their  stock-in-trade,  and  to  repeat  extracts 
from  their  sacred  books  for  the  relief  of  a sick  person  is 
again  and  again  their  practice.  For  pain  in  the  back 
from  all  causes,  the  following  “ prescription,”  cited  by 
Miss  Barnes  in  “ Between  Life  and  Death,”  will  give  a 
concise  idea  of  the  absurdities  of  this  native  treatment — 
“ Take  two  rice  poles,  and  stand  in  the  middle  of  the 
bazaar ; hold  the  poles  at  arm’s  length,  then  slowly 
bring  them  together  in  front,  but  do  not  knock  the  ends. 
The  native  doctor  will  then  squeeze  some  green  juice 
on  the  pole  and  murmur  an  incantation,  after  which,  at 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


61 


a given  signal,  the  poles  are  to  be  knocked  together.” 
The  only  addition  to  this  caricature  of  treatment  that 
need  be  noted  is  that  at  its  close  the  “ doctor  ” takes  his 
fee  and  departs  ! 

Dr  Vincent  Thomas  of  Palwal,  N.  India,  relates  how 
on  one  occasion  he  was  called  to  attend  a poor  young 
fellow  who  was  sick  in  a village  some  miles  from  his 
station.  Upon  arrival  Dr  Thomas  found  that  the  patient 
had  been  ill  for  some  days,  and  that  he  was  suffering 
from  pneumonia.  Asking  why  he  had  not  been  sent  for 
sooner,  he  was  told  that  they  had  called  in  first  of  all 
a native  sorcerer,  who  said  the  cause  of  the  illness 
was  a devil  in  the  liver  ! Then  a native  hakim  had  been 
called,  and  his  treatment  resolved  itself  into  the  applica- 
tion of  bullocks’  horns,  being  a form  of  native  cupping, 
to  the  soles  of  the  feet.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  when 
Dr  Thomas  arrived  the  patient  “ had  one  foot  in  the 
grave  already  ” ? Happily  the  life  was  saved,  but  not 
thanks  to  the  native  treatment. 

Very  frequently,  however,  the  poor  patients  are  sub- 
mitted to  far  worse  measures  than  those  which  have 
been  illustrated  above.  Dr  Elsie  Watts  wrote  a few 
years  ago  that  “ the  only  idea  of  treatment  for  any  in- 
ternal disease  that  the  native  doctor  has  is  to  put  hot 
irons  on  the  outside  and  make  a sore  place  on  the  skin.” 
Can  we  imagine  what  suffering  this  must  entail,  especially 
when  it  is  done  to  little  children  ? In  “ The  Healing  of 
the  Nations  ” (Dr  Rutter  Williamson)  it  is  stated  that 
a native  treatment  for  infantile  convulsions  is  to  place 
a red-hot  iron  to  the  spot  on  the  child’s  head  where  the 
pulsations  can  be  seen,  leading,  as  it  must  do,  to  the  de- 
struction of  all  the  scalp  tissues.  The  reason  given  for 
this  barbarous  practice  is  that  an  evil  spirit  enters  here 
and  must  be  destroyed  if  death  is  to  be  prevented.  The 


62  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


author  himself,  during  a brief  tour  in  India,  saw  sad 
evidences  of  this  unjustifiable  use  of  the  actual  cautery. 

As  in  China,  so  in  India,  one  of  the  most  prevalent 
forms  of  disease  is  that  of  the  eye,  and  some  very  terrible 
examples  of  cruel  and  ignorant  treatment  have  been 
recorded.  Dr  Vincent  Thomas  tells  how  there  once  came 
to  his  dispensary  a man  hopelessly  blind  in  one  eye, 
whose  history  disclosed  the  fact  that  what  had  been  a 
simple  inflammation  had  been  treated  by  such  vigorous 
counter-irritation  to  the  temple  that  a ruinous  and 
destructive  inflammation  had  developed,  leading  to 
absolute  loss  of  sight.  Another  instance  that  the  same 
Medical  Missionary  reports  is  that  of  a young  child 
brought  to  him  for  eye  trouble.  The  poor  mother, 
following  the  native  treatment,  had  applied  to  each 
eye  a paste  made  of  lamp  black,  glue  and  another  un- 
mentionable substance.  The  result  of  this  was  total 
disorganisation  of  the  eyeballs  and  hopeless  blindness. 
In  “ Between  Life  and  Death,”  Miss  Irene  Barnes  gives 
a further  fearful  illustration  of  a native  treatment  for 
cataract.  A woman  patient  came  into  a mission  hospital, 
and  gave  the  story  that  a few  years  before,  when  nearly 
blind, she  had  placed  herself  under  the  care  of  a “hakim,” 
and  to  pay  his  fee  had  pawned  her  cooking  vessels.  He 
then  had  thrust  a red-hot  needle  into  the  eyeball,  dis- 
locating the  opaque  lens,  and  occasioning  not  only 
intense  pain,  but  permanent  blindness  ! With  what  a 
shudder  does  the  heart  recoil  from  the  thought  of  the 
sufferings  of  that  poor  woman. 

And  as  may  have  been  already  gathered,  it  is  the 
women  who  often  suffer  most  and  worst.  In  the 
seclusion  of  their  zenanas,  with  only  ignorant  and  low- 
caste  women  to  attend  to  them  in  their  hour  of  need, 
they  suffer  and  die  under  fearful  wrongs  that  are  too 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


63 


harrowing  to  describe.  Our  lady  Medical  Missionaries, 
who  are  often  called  to  render  help  in  these  sad  cases, 
have  stories  to  give  of  the  most  frightful  practices.  The 
best  that  can  be  said  is  often  that  neglect  forms  the 
major  element  in  the  treatment.  Is  it  any  wonder  that 
there  is  such  a high  maternal  and  infantile  mortality 
in  India  ? We  ask  again  as  the  pen  grows  weary  of 
chronicling  this  almost  unending  catalogue  of  needs  and 
woes — Is  there  then  no  need  for  Medical  Missions  ? 

We  travel  on  and  come  to  one  more  of  the  world’s 
great  Mission  Fields,  this  time 

Africa 

This  vast  land,  fitly  named  by  reason  of  its  super- 
stition and  degradation  “ the  dark  Continent,” 
presents  no  exception  to  the  rule  when  the  needs  of 
its  sick  are  considered.  A belief  in  the  perpetual 
presence  and  machinations  of  evil  spirits  dominates 
whole  regions  in  Africa,  and  leads  the  African  to 
attribute  to  such  causes  most  of  the  sickness  with  which 
he  is  afflicted.  His  first  thought  is  usually  not  “ what 
is  the  matter  ” when  illness  overtakes  him,  but  “ who 
is  the  cause  ” ; in  other  words,  who  amongst  his  enemies 
has  cast  a spell  over  him.  The  result  is  that  he  seeks 
the  help  of  his  medicine  man  or  witch  doctor,  with  the 
definite  object  of  having  the  spell  broken  and  the  evil 
spirit  sent  away.  Thus  it  is  that  around  the  poor  sick 
person  in  Central  Africa  there  settles  down  a night  of 
debasing  superstition.  The  subject  of  dread  and  delusion, 
the  object  of  fear  and  loathing,  the  diseased  African  is 
one  to  be  profoundly  pitied  and  speedily  delivered. 

The  witch  doctors  are  a cunning  and  shrewd  set  of 
men,  supposed  to  be  possessed  of  special  power  over 


64  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


malignant  spirits  and  regarded  by  the  ignorant  people 
with  great  awe.  They  are  unquestionably  the  very 
citadels  of  superstition  and  demoralisation  in  the  districts 
where  they  exercise  their  baneful  sway.  Their  “ stock- 
in-trade  ” consists  of  a set  of  gourds,  and  the  skin  of  an 
animal  to  which  are  attached  charms.  How  they  proceed 
when  called  to  a “ case  ” may  be  gathered  from  the 
following  description,  written  by  the  Rev.  John  Weeks, 
of  the  Congo  : — 

“ In  diagnosing  a case  the  ‘ doctor  ’ must  not  ask  any 
direct  questions,  but  he  overcomes  the  difficulty  thus. 
He  asks  a series  of  very  indirect  questions,  and  if  those 
present  say  ‘ Ndungu,’  he  knows  he  is  on  the  wrong 
track  ; but  if  they  shout  excitedly  ‘ Otuama,’  he  knows 
he  has  guessed  rightly  ; and  the  more  excitedly  they  say 
the  word  ‘ Otuama,’  the  nearer  is  he  in  his  guess  ; and 
the  more  indifferently  they  say  ‘ Ndungu,’  the  farther 
he  is  from  the  truth.  Hence,  when  the  people  of  the 
village  have  gathered  around  him,  he  starts  : ‘ There 
are  such  things  as  pains  in  the  stomach.’  ‘ Ndungu,’ 
quietly  say  the  people.  ‘ Sometimes  there  are  back- 
aches, headaches,  and  pains  in  the  chest.’  ‘ Ndungu,’  is 
coldly  repeated  by  the  folk.  The  ‘ doctor  ’ knows  he 
has  taken  the  wrong  line,  but  he  has  narrowed  the  list 
of  affected  parts.  He  begins  again  : ‘ There  arc  such 
things  as  severe  pains  and  aches  in  the  arms  and  legs.’ 
‘ Otuama,’  say  the  poor  folk.  He  now  knows  the  affected 
part  is  an  arm  or  a leg.  So  he  goes  on  narrowing  down 
until  he  says  : ‘ Ah  ! the  right  leg  is  bad.’  The  people 
excitedly  exclaim,  ‘ Otuama,’  snap  their  fingers  in 
astonishment,  and  look  at  the  ‘ doctor  ’ with  awe  and 
wonder. 

“ The  ‘ doctor  ’ has  thus  ascertained  that  it  is  the  right 
leg  that  has  to  be  treated.  Now,  what  arc  the  most 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


65 


common  complaints  of  the  leg  : rheumatism,  boils,  cuts, 
sprains,  abscesses,  etc.  So  again  he  starts,  this  time  to 
discover  the  complaint  and  its  exact  location  on  the 
right  leg,  and  the  folk  say  coldly  ‘ Ndungu,’  as  he  misses 
in  his  guesses,  or  excitedly  shout  ‘ Otuama  ’ as,  by  his 
cunning  process,  he  narrows  the  circle  smaller  and  smaller, 
until  at  last,  to  the  astonishment  of  all  present,  he  says  : 

‘ The  woman  is  suffering  from  a bad  abscess  on  the  inside 
part  of  her  right  thigh.’  The  people  think  that  such  a 
clever  ‘ doctor,’  who  has  found  out  all  about  the  disease, 
etc.,  without  being  told,  is  just  the  man  to  cure  the 
patient.  He  is  consequently  engaged  and  well  paid. 

“ Should  the  patient  not  get  better,  but  a series  of 
abscesses  break  out,  another  ‘ doctor  ’ is  called,  by  name 
* Ngang  ’a  Moko.’  He  arrives  and  conducts  an  inquiry 
similar  to  the  one  above,  but  directed  in  such  a way  as 
to  discover  whether  the  patient  is  hated  by  any  parti- 
cular person  who  would  like  to  bewitch  her.  After  due 
questioning  and  much  consideration,  he  states  whether 
the  woman  is  suffering  from  bewitchment,  evil  spirits, 
or  from  some  unknown  cause.  If  the  latter,  nothing 
is  done  except  the  abscesses  are  treated  with  medicinal 
herb  plasters  or  some  mess  compounded  by  the  ‘ doctor.’ 
If,  however,  the  ‘ Ngang  ’a  Moko  ’ (Moko  doctor)  says 
she  is  bewitched,  her  relatives  call  in  another  ‘ doctor,’ 
who  shouts  to  the  witch  to  leave  the  woman  alone,  and 
calls  down  all  kinds  of  curses  and  imprecations  on  the 
person  bewitching  her.  In  the  quiet  of  the  night  you 
can  hear  a man  going  through  the  village  beating  a native 
bell  and  shouting  to  the  witch  to  let  the  woman  alone, 
threatening  the  witch  to  call  in  some  noted  witch  doctor 
to  search  the  wicked  witch  out  and  cause  his  or  her  death. 
But  neither  cursing  nor  entreating  avail,  for  the  woman 
becomes  worse.  Perhaps  the  ‘ Moko  doctor  ’ said  it  was 

E 


66  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


an  evil  spirit  of  some  deceased  relative  that  was  troubling 
her,  so  they  resort  to  a ‘ doctor  ’ whose  special  business  is 
to  appease  such  spirits  by  sacrifices,  or  frighten  them  away 
by  threats,  by  cursing  them,  and  firing  guns  at  them.” 

The  modus  operandi  of  those  “ doctors  ” differs  in 
various  parts  of  pagan  Africa,  but  the  foregoing  will 
convey  a clear  ideal  of  the  futility,  absurdity,  and  heath- 
enish character  of  such  practices  under  which  millions 
to-day  are  held  in  thraldom.  When  in  addition  to  this 
is  remembered  the  widespread  extent  of  disease  in  the 
African  continent,  and  how  great  is  the  suffering  associ- 
ated with  many  of  the  affections,  it  will  be  easily 
recognised  that  the  claim  for  help  and  healing  is  appealing 
in  its  urgency.  Is  there  then,  we  ask,  once  again,  no 
need  for  Medical  Missions  ? 

And  now  finally  let  us  direct  our  attention  to  that  great 
section  of  the  non-Christian  world, 

The  Lands  of  Islam. 

It  does  not  require  much  examination  of  the  con- 
ditions prevalent  in  countries  such  as  Persia,  Arabia, 
Palestine,  and  North  Africa,  during  the  presence  of 
sickness,  to  bring  home  the  fact  that  here  also  we  are 
faced  with  tremendous  need.  Practically  all  through 
these  lands  there  is  the  most  extraordinary  ignorance  of 
the  proper  nature  of  disease,  and  the  way  to  effect  a 
cure.  Everywhere  there  is  made  apparent  the  darken- 
ing superstition  that  flourishes  under  the  reign  of 
Mahomet.  The  case  is  reported  by  Dr  Rutter  William- 
son, in  his  “ Healing  of  the  Nations,”  of  a little  Mahom- 
medan  boy,  son  of  a Turkish  Governor,  who  became  ill.  A 
Mahommedan  “ hakim  ” was  called  in,  and  his  treatment 
consisted  in  writing  the  name  of  “ Allah  ” upon  a saucer, 


NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  67 

and  then  giving  instructions  that  the  writing  should  be 
subjected  to  a series  of  washings  until  all  traces  of  the 
same  were  washed  away  ! The  inky  fluid  was  then  to 
be  drunk  by  the  patient,  “ who  was  bound  to  get  better 
because  he  would  have  drunk  the  name  of  God  so  many 
times ! ” Far  worse,  however,  are  several  other  measures 
that  are  employed.  In  Arabia,  the  Kai  or  actual  cautery 
is  a favourite  cure  for  many  different  affections.  Holes 
are  burnt  in  the  skin  in  various  parts  of  the  body  “ to 
let  the  disease  out,”  and  even  sick  children  of  tender 
years  are  branded  with  red-hot  irons.  Amulets,  charms, 
etc.,  are  everywhere  worn  to  protect  “ from  the 
evil  eye,”  and  these  often  consist  of  extracts  from  the 
Koran. 

A Mecca  “ M.D.,”  we  read  in  Dr  Zwemer’s  “ Arabia, 
The  Cradle  of  Islam,”  was  also  “ watchmaker,  gunsmith, 
and  distiller  of  perfume  ; to  fill  up  his  idle  hours  he  did 
a little  silver  plating  and  dealt  in  old  coins  ! ” And 
so  we  might  continue  bringing  up  instance  after  instance 
illustrative  of  the  same  appalling  conditions.  But 
enough  has  been  said,  and  there  are  none  who  will  not 
sadly  admit  that  under  Mahommedanism  the  terrible 
reign  of  quackery  is  dealing  out  woe  and  death  amongst 
the  sick  on  every  hand.  Can  any  deny  the  need  for 
Medical  Missions  ? 

And  now  in  closing  this  section  of  our  subject,  we 
earnestly  submit  that  in  view  of  the  foregoing  con- 
ditions the  great  Mission  Fields  of  the  world  present 
to-day  a state  of  necessity  that  is  simply  enormous 
for  the  healing  benefits  of  Medical  Missions.  Whether 
it  be  Heathen  or  Moslem,  the  same  need  is  every- 
where manifest.  And  surely  the  only  answer  which 
the  servants  of  Jesus  Christ  have  any  right  to  give 
to  these  suffering  multitudes  is  the  reply  that  is 


68  NEED  FOR  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

embodied  in  Medical  Missions.  These  races  are  entitled 
to  share  in  the  blessing  of  that  healing  science  which 
we  enjoy.  It  is  not  a case  of  giving  them  just  as  much 
as  we  think  we  can  spare.  It  is  pre-eminently  in  the 
name  of  every  sacred  instinct  in  our  common  humanity, 
the  giving  them  that  share  of  those  blessings  which 
conscience  tells  us  is  owing  to  them.  The  wonderful 
gifts  of  modern  medical  knowledge  such  as  anaesthetics 
and  antiseptics,  have  not  been  bestowed  upon  the 
favoured  people  of  Christian  lands  for  their  use 
alone.  They  have  certainly  been  given  as  a very 
solemn  trust,  to  be  held  and  utilised  for  the  benefit 
of  all  races.  They  have  been  poured  forth  from  the 
hands  of  a beneficient  Creator  not  for  the  healing 
of  the  suffering  European  and  American — and  for 
him  only — but  for  the  good  of  distressed  mankind  in 
every  quarter  of  the  globe.  Every  moral  obligation 
under  which  we  are  placed  emphasises  the  truth  of 
that  fact. 

“ My  little  children,”  wrote  the  Apostle  John,  “ Let 
us  not  love  in  word,  neither  in  tongue,  but  in  deed  and 
truth,”  and  he  puts  in  the  same  place  the  pregnant 
question, — “ But  whoso  hath  this  world’s  goods  and  seeth 
his  brother  have  need  and  shutteth  up  his  bowels  of 
compassion  from  horn,  how  dwelleth  the  Love  of  God  in 
him  ? ” 

Can  we  close  this  chapter  in  a more  fitting  way 
than  by  passing  on  that  question  to  every  Christian 
reader  ? 


CHAPTER  V 


THE  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ So  I do  from  my  heart  believe  that  in  these  difficult  places  in 
somo  of  the  bigger  cities  in  China  and  especially  among  the  Moham- 
medans in  Persia,  Palestine,  and  Africa,  the  Medical  Missionary, 
whether  man  or  woman,  is  able  to  do  a work  which  no  other  can  do  ” 
— Dr  Herbert  Lankester 

In  the  previous  chapter  we  were  brought  face  to  face  with 
the  enormous  physical  need  for  Medical  Missions.  On 
every  hand  there  opened  up  wide  vistas  of  human  need. 
The  ignorance  was  seen  to  be  immense,  the  superstition 
saddening,  the  mal-treatment  of  the  sick,  terrible. 
Destitution  sounded  its  note  of  sorrow  in  our  ears,  and 
across  the  seas  there  seemed  to  come  “ a cry  as  of  pain.” 
But  great  and  obligatory  as  is  the  philanthropic  function 
of  Medical  Missions,  there  is  a higher  and  greater  sphere 
for  them  than  ever  mere  philanthropy  can  present. 
The  supreme  enterprise  to  which  Christ  has  summoned 
His  Church  is  not  chiefly  or  merely  the  civilisation  of 
the  human  race,  nor  even  the  alleviation  of  its  physical 
woes  and  wrongs.  What  has  been  assigned  to  the 
Church  as  its  dominating  mission  in  the  Divine  plan  of 
redemption  is  no  less  a task  than  the  evangelisation 
of  the  world.  And  the  ultimate  standard  by  which  any 
form  of  missionary  activity  must  be  judged,  accepted,  or 
rejected,  lies  in  the  degree  to  which  it  may  be  proved 
to  contribute  an  effective  solution  of  any  of  the  prob- 
lems which  present  themselves  in  the  conduct  of  the 

69 


70  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

missionary  campaign.  We  would  therefore  now  invite  con- 
sideration of  the  following  ways  in  which  Medical  Missions 
attest  their  missionary  value,  and  exhibit  their  striking 
influence  in  the  propagation  of  the  Christian  Faith. 

I.  Evangelistic. 

(a)  As  a Pioneer  Agency  : 

1.  By  overcoming  hostility  and  prejudice. 

2.  By  destroying  superstition. 

( b ) As  a Direct  Spiritual  Agency  : 

1.  By  procuring  a wide  diffusion  of  the  Gospel 

message. 

2.  By  exhibiting  an  object  lesson  of  the  Gospel. 

3.  By  securing  time  for  repeated  presentations 

of  the  Gospel  both  by  lip  and  life. 

II.  Social. 

As  a Christian  Social  Agency  : 

1.  By  weakening  such  systems  as  Caste. 

2.  By  acting  as  centres  for  public  health  reform. 

3.  By  imparting  a new  standard  to  human  life, 

especially  that  of  womanhood. 

III.  Educational. 

(a)  As  a Christian  Educational  Agency  : 

1.  By  supplying  scientific  Medical  knowledge. 

2.  By  training  Native  Medical  Students,  and 

raising  up  Native  Medical  Missionaries. 

(b)  As  a Christian  Philanthropic  Agency. 

By  training  the  Native  Christian  Church  in 
true  Christian  Philanthropy. 

IV.  Economic. 

As  a Missionary  Health  Agency  : 

1.  By  diffusing  a proper  knowledge  of  the  pre- 
servation of  health  amongst  the  Missionary 
Staff. 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


71 


2.  By  treating  sick  members  of  the  Staff. 

3.  By  guiding  the  health  administration  of  Mis- 

sionary societies. 

Let  us  now  examine  these  in  detail. 

I.  The  Evangelistic  value  of  Medical  Missions. 

(a)  As  a Pioneer  Missionary  Agency. 

1.  By  overcoming  hostility  and  prejudice. — From  the 
very  inception  of  the  missionary  enterprise  opposition 
and  deep-seated  prejudice  have  almost  invariably  been 
the  lot  of  the  Christian  Missionary  whenever  he  has  been 
engaged  in  the  introduction  of  the  Gospel  to  non- 
Christian  races.  Whether  it  be  amongst  the  fanatical 
Moslems  with  their  cry  of  “ infidel  dog,”  amidst  the 
teeming  millions  of  the  small  world  of  China  with  their 
hostile  epithet,  “ foreign  devil,”  or  throughout  the  haunts 
of  cannibal  savages,  in  nearly  every  place  unfriendliness 
and  prejudice  encircle  the  pioneer  of  “ Glad  Tidings.” 
And  the  question  that  constantly  presses  upon  him  is 
as  to  how  this  difficulty  can  be  surmounted,  this  hostility 
changed  into  friendship. 

Now  no  answer  can  be  adequate  which  does  not  take 
into  account  the  cause,  and  this,  speaking  generally, 
may  be  said  to  be  twofold  : — (1)  Opposition  to  the 
missionary  as  a foreigner ; (2)  Opposition  to  the 

missionary  as  one  whose  avowed  intention  it  is  to  over- 
turn ancient  and  cherished  beliefs,  and  inculcate  a new 
and  “ western  ” religion.  The  hostility  is  therefore 
a very  natural  one.  The  non-Christian  man  does  not 
recognise  in  the  missionary  his  brother  coming  to  tell 
him  of  the  love  of  God,  but  on  the  contrary,  views  him 
commonly  as  the  “ hated  foreigner.”  To  the  follower 
of  Mohammed  or  Buddha  the  missionary  is  no  messenger 
of  salvation  but  rather  one  who  unjustifiably  seeks  to 


72 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


interfere  with,  his  faith  and  practice.  Accordingly 
hatred  is  engendered  and  prejudice  sinks  deep. 

Now  it  will  be  obvious  that  to  attempt  to  meet  this 
attitude  by  the  direct  preaching  of  the  Gospel,  without 
the  assistance  of  any  method  calculated  to  place  a new 
complexion  on  the  missionary  and  his  work,  is  to  court 
disaster.  We  do  not  for  a moment  say  that  the  simple 
message  of  the  truth  unattended  by  any  commending 
feature  is  never  likely  to  attain  a receptive  hearing.  On 
the  contrary,  numerous  instances  stud  the  pages  of 
mission  history  bearing  out  the  wondrous  power  pos- 
sessed by  the  Gospel  to  captivate  the  hearts  of  those 
strange  to  its  tidings.  But  it  is  equally  true  that  as  a 
rule  the  evangelistic  missionary  finds  himself  in  urgent 
need  of  a vantage  ground  from  whence  he  can  gain  an 
introduction  for  his  message  amongst  a people  otherwise 
in  opposition.  Herein  then  lies  the  sphere  for  Medical 
Missions.  Disarming  hostility,  earning  gratitude,  and 
winning  love,  this  form  of  practical  Christianity  so  turns 
the  flank  of  the  opposition  that  the  once  hostile  fanatic, 
now  transformed  into  the  grateful  patient,  willingly 
listens  to  the  Gospel  from  the  lips  of  his  benefactor, 
and  in  instance  after  instance  goes  on  to  become  an 
earnest  inquirer  and  a baptised  believer  as  the  direct 
outcome  of  healing  as  well  as  preaching.  The  key  of 
sympathy  unlocks  the  door  of  prejudice  and  gives  to  the 
pioneer  missionary  an  opening  of  undisputed  value. 

Let  us  cite  three  examples  to  illustrate  the  truth  of 
those  words,  two  of  them  exhibiting  the  place  and  power 
of  Medical  Missions  in  opening  closed  lands  and  the 
other  showing  their  value  in  dispelling  ignorant  pre- 
judice. Many  years  ago  the  Church  Missionary  Society 
sought  to  obtain  an  entrance  for  the  Gospel  into  the 
native  state  of  Kashmir  in  the  North  of  India.  It  sent 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  73 


two  of  its  most  experienced  missionaries  with  a staff 
of  native  preachers,  but  on  three  separate  occasions 
these  were  driven  out  and  the  door  to  mission  work  was 
closed.  Then  the  society  resolved  to  send  Dr  Elmslie, 
a Medical  Missionary,  and  to  attempt  to  commence  a 
Medical  Mission.  Gradually  by  his  splendid  surgery 
opposition  was  broken  down,  and  a foothold  gained 
in  this  hitherto  impregnable  fortress  of  heathenism. 
Other  missionaries  were  enabled  to  follow,  and  to-day, 
as  an  outcome  of  that  initial  effort,  there  are  mission 
stations  throughout  Kashmir  where  the  healing  of  the 
sick  is  accompanied  by  the  preaching  of  the  Gospel. 

Passing  to  the  Far  East  the  same  striking  value  of 
Medical  Missions  receives  telling  emphasis  in  the  story 
of  the  opening  of  Korea.  Up  to  1884  no  mission  work 
had  been  possible  in  that  country,  the  rulers  and 
people  were  determined  to  exclude  the  missionaries. 
In  the  autumn  of  that  year,  however,  Dr  Allen,  an 
American  Medical  Missionary,  was  deputed  to  attempt 
an  entry  into  Korea.  He  could  only  do  so  by  be- 
coming physician  to  the  American  Legation  stationed 
at  Seoul,  the  capital.  For  some  time  no  opportunity 
presented  itself  for  commencing  any  form  of  Medical 
Mission  work.  Then  one  night  there  occurred  a riot 
in  the  city,  during  which  the  nephew  of  the  King — Prince 
Min  Yong  Ik — was  seriously  wounded.  Dr  Allen  was 
summoned  to  attend  him,  and  when  he  arrived  found 
about  thirteen  of  the  native  doctors  trying  to  staunch 
the  bleeding  wounds  by  filling  them  with  wax.  They 
gazed  on  in  amazement  as  the  medical  missionary  secured 
the  bleeding  vessels,  cleansed  and  sutured  the  wounds. 
Dr  Allen  remained  in  attendance  on  the  prince  until  he 
was  restored  to  health  again,  and  by  this  successful 
application  of  medical  skill  not  only  occasioned  a revolu- 


74 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


tion  in  the  medical  treatment  of  that  country,  but  also 
obtained  a marvellous  vantage  ground  for  carrying  on 
missionary  work.  The  then  Government  of  Korea 
subscribed  for  the  building  of  a hospital  for  Dr  Allen, 
which  was  established  under  royal  patronage,  and  where 
not  only  the  healing  of  the  sick  was  carried  on  but  also 
the  preaching  of  the  Gospel.  Other  missionaries  were 
allowed  to  settle  in  Korea,  the  people  showed  confidence 
in  them,  and  to-day  this  once-closed  land  has  been  the 
scene  of  some  of  the  most  splendid  triumphs  of  the 
Cross  as  the  direct  outcome  of  the  work  of  medico- 
evangelism. 

A short  time  ago  a Medical  Missionary  of  the  Baptist 
Missionary  Society — Dr  Vincent  Thomas — was  engaged 
in  medical  itineration  in  a village  district  to  the  south 
of  Delhi,  North  India.  One  morning  there  came  to  his 
dispensary  a Mohammedan  man  suffering  from  a severely 
inflamed  arm,  the  result  of  an  untreated  wound  on  his 
hand.  It  was  a serious  case,  and  demanded  the  utmost 
skill  and  promptitude  in  treatment.  Dr  Thomas  devoted 
every  attention  to  the  patient,  and,  by  God’s  blessing, 
his  care  was  rewarded  by  a happy  recovery.  The  man 
returned  to  his  village,  and  for  a year  Dr  Thomas  did  not 
see  him  again.  Then  it  so  happened  that  Dr  Thomas 
was  out  on  itineration  once  more,  this  time  in  the 
very  vicinity  of  his  former  patient’s  village,  of  which 
it  appeared  he  was  the  head-man.  When  he  came  to 
hear  who  Dr  Thomas  was,  and  remembered  how  he  had 
been  carefully  treated  a year  previously,  he  invited  the 
doctor  to  visit  his  village  and  speak  to  his  people.  Accept- 
ing the  invitation  gladly,  Dr  Thomas  utilised  the  oppor- 
tunity to  preach  the  Gospel  to  the  entire  population  of 
the  place.  After  he  had  finished,  the  head-man  said 
that  he  wished  to  say  something,  and  the  following 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  75 

is  the  summary  of  his  statement  as  translated  by  Dr 
Thomas  : — 

“ Before  I came  to  your  dispensary  last  year,  I used 
to  hate  and  revile  Christians,  and  never  would  I allow 
any  ‘ padri  ’ to  preach  in  my  village  if  I could  help  it ; 
but  when  I came  to  you  you  never  asked  me  whether 
I was  your  friend  or  foe  ; you  did  your  work  well,  and 
showed  me  kindness  that  I never  deserved.  Now  I 
am  ashamed  of  myself.  I shall  never  treat  Christians 
so  again.  They  have  a pitiful  heart,  which  our  religion 
does  not  give  us.  I shall  not  forget  your  words  to  us 
to-day.  May  God  Most  High  be  your  guard  through 
life,  and  give  you  peace  and  prosperity.”  And  the  men 
standing  round  said,  “ God  has  worked  a miracle  in 
that  man’s  heart,  for  he  would  never  have  spoken  like 
this  about  Christians  before.” 

Can  it  be  wondered,  in  face  of  such  signal  proofs 
as  these,  which  could  be  multiplied  again  and  again  and 
taken  from  the  history  of  Missions  all  over  the  world, 
that  the  Report  of  the  First  Commission  of  the  World 
Missionary  Conference  contains  the  following  striking 
expression  of  opinion  : — “ Medical  Missions  . . .are  in- 
valuable as  a pioneer  agency  for  breaking  down  the 
barriers  of  prejudice  and  dissipating  misapprehensions 
concerning  the  Christian  faith.  Nothing  can  be  more 
effective  in  disarming  suspicion,  and  in  modifying 
the  attitude  of  both  Government  and  people  towards 
missionary  work.” 

The  words  of  Dr  John  R.  Mott  are  also  significant  in 
this  connection,  specially  as  regards  medical  work 
amongst  Moslems.  Speaking  in  the  Royal  Albert  Hall, 
London,  in  1908,  he  said,  in  allusion  to  the  Turkish 
Empire  : “ The  medical  arm  of  the  missionary  service 
must  be  further  strengthened.  I believe  that  Moslem 


76 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Turkey  could  almost  be  won  by  this  one  Christian  method 
alone.”  Clearly,  therefore,  there  is  a call  of  the  loudest 
urgency  for  all  that  can  be  done  through  Medical  Missions 
in  winning  difficult  peoples,  and  obtaining  an  entrance 
for  the  Gospel  into  the  strongholds  of  bigotry  and 
fanaticism. 

2.  By  destroying  superstition. — Widespread,  deep- 
rooted,  and  enthralling,  superstition  offers  considerable 
resistance  to  the  work  of  the  missionary.  No  one 
characteristic  may  be  said  to  be  more  generally  common 
to  all  the  lands  of  non-Christian  nations.  It  is  the 
inevitable  accompaniment,  and  ofttimes  the  mainstay, 
of  many  of  the  false  religious  systems  found  in  these 
lands.  Moreover,  the  superstition  in  belief  finds  expres- 
sion in  innumerable  superstitious  practices  and  social 
evils,  which,  holding  the  people  in  their  deadening 
grasp,  powerfully  withstand  the  spread  of  the  Gospel. 

How,  then,  is  this  difficulty  to  be  overcome,  and  the 
people’s  faith  in  their  cherished  superstitions  to  be  de- 
stroyed ? Our  providential  way  presents  itself.  “ In 
the  life  and  thought  of  the  non-Christian  man  religion 
and  medicine  go  hand-in-hand.  The  man  who  is  his 
fetish  is  also  his  medicine  man.”  Accordingly,  the  super- 
stition that  reigns  rampant  in  his  religion,  reigns  equally 
in  his  conceptions  of  disease  and  its  treatment,  as  indeed 
we  have  seen  already.  It  follows,  therefore,  that  no 
more  fatal  blow  can  be  dealt  at  this  awful  evil,  cursing 
alike  body  and  soul,  than  by  proving  by  living  demonstra- 
tions the  fallacy,  fatuity,  and  powerlessness  of  the  super- 
stitious methods  of  treatment  employed  by  the  medicine 
man.  Destroy  the  faith  of  the  non-Christian  man  in 
his  “ doctor  ” and  you  have  very  frequently  taken  the 
surest  and  simplest  course  towards  the  destruction  of 
his  faith  in  the  superstition  of  his  religion. 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


77 


Now  this  is  exactly  the  work  and  logic  of  Medical 
Missions.  Going  right  to  the  very  cause  of  many  of 
the  stubborn  hindrances  that  confront  the  missionary 
in  his  efforts  to  establish  a native  Christian  Church, 
they  constantly  reveal  how  powerful  is  their  aid  in  liberat- 
ing the  slaves  of  error,  and  in  preparing  a way  for  the 
“ Sun  of  Righteousness  to  arise  with  healing  in  His 
wings.”  As  an  example,  the  following  instance  may  be 
cited : — The  wife  of  a witch  doctor  in  Siam  was  unable 
to  sleep  on  one  occasion  for  many  nights  on  account 
of  a local  abscess.  Her  husband  tried  his  skill  (their 
practice  is  that  of  “ blowing  ” to  remove  the  evil  spirit) 
but  all  to  no  avail.  Then  other  native  doctors  were 
called  in,  but  with  no  better  result.  Finally  in  despera- 
tion they  sought  the  help  of  a native  “ Elder  ” of  the 
Christian  Church  in  the  district.  This  man,  having  a 
little  medical  instruction,  was  able  to  use  a lancet  and 
speedily  gave  great  relief,  and  the  patient  slept  for  the 
first  time  for  many  days  ! Later  on  the  patient  and 
her  husband  came  to  the  “ Elder  ” to  be  instructed  in  the 
Gospel ; for,  said  they,  “ since  the  methods  of  our  fathers 
gave  no  relief,  we  have  decided  to  leave  all  those  things 
and  take  the  Elder’s  God  to  be  our  God.” 

This  is  but  one  instance,  and  yet  it  will,  we  think, 
serve  to  shew  how  great  is  the  usefulness  of  Medical 
Missions  in  weakening  superstition  and  leading  to  its 
total  abandonment.  If,  then,  we  have  at  command  such 
a force  for  dealing  with  the  difficulty  of  superstition, 
such  a God-given  way  for  proving  its  foolishness,  is  it 
not  unwise  if  we  do  not  use  it  to  the  full  ? 

( b ) As  a direct  Spiritual  Agency. 

It  has  already  been  shown  how  vital  is  the  spirit 
of  evangelism  in  the  work  of  Medical  Missions.  It 
is  their  very  life  blood.  The  Medical  Mission  that 


78 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


does  not  make  the  winning  of  souls  its  supreme  pur- 
pose, that  does  not  strive  mightily  to  lead  its  patients 
to  Christ,  may  be  a perfect  pattern  of  philanthropy, 
but  it  is  certainly  not  a Medical  Mission.  True 
indeed  that  now  and  again  amid  the  insistent  calls 
for  the  healing  of  the  body  the  great  end  becomes  ob- 
scured, but  it  is  never  lost,  except  at  the  sacrifice  of  the 
Medical  Mission  itself.  In  season  and  out  of  season, 
with  unceasing  vigilance,  the  spiritual  aspect  of  Medical 
Missions  must  be  maintained  and  enforced.  In  the  words 
of  the  Rev.  G.  E.  Post,  M.D. : “ The  ministry  of  healing 
has  also  a motive  and  an  end  above  itself,  which  raises 
it  to  the  highest  plane  of  Christian  service.  This  motive 
and  end  are  the  saving  of  the  soul  from  sin  and  death.” 

The  Medical  Missionary  is  therefore  essentially  a 
spiritual  man,  energised  by  the  Spirit  of  God  and 
employed  upon  a double  errand,  in  the  pursuit  of 
which  he  is  never  satisfied  until  having  used  his  God- 
given  science  for  the  healing  of  sickness,  he  has  also 
led  those  to  whom  he  ministers  to  the  feet  of  Christ. 

The  point,  however,  which  more  especially  concerns 
us  at  this  juncture  is  the  contribution  that  Medical 
Missions  are  enabled  to  make  in  multiplying  the  fruits 
of  evangelistic  effort.  For  it  needs  but  a moment’s 
consideration  to  appreciate  the  fact  that  again  and  again 
the  evangelistic  missionary  is  in  need  of  such  help. 
In  the  bazaar,  by  the  wayside,  in  the  chapel,  on  new 
ground,  whenever  and  wherever  he  has  opportunity, 
it  is  his  purpose  to  present  to  the  people  the  story 
of  the  Gospel.  But  in  doing  so  one  difficulty  very 
frequently  presses  upon  him, — viz.  that  of  securing  on 
the  part  of  his  hearers  an  intelligent  appreciation  of 
the  message,  and  permanently  impressing  them  with 
its  truth.  His  audiences  are  constantly  changing ; 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


70 


in  large  measure  they  are  composed  of  those  to  whom 
the  Gospel  is  something  new  and  strange,  and  whose 
minds  and  consciences  arc  blighted  by  false  faiths, 
ancient  superstitions,  and  the  sins  of  ages.  These 
people  even  if  they  were  willing  to  accept  it,  cannot 
easily  understand  the  Gospel : they  need  patient  and 
repeated  explanation.  And  in  order  that  this  may  be 
done  there  must  be  some  definite  hold  established  on 
them  by  the  missionary,  and  some  vital  point  of  contact 
set  up.  It  is  just  here  that  medico-evangelism  steps 
in  and  acts  as  a direct  evangelising  agency  in  the  following 
three-fold  way  : — 

1.  By  securing  a wide  diffusion  of  the  Gospel  message. 
— Medical  Missions  have  been  called,  with  some  aptness, 
“ the  magnet  of  the  missionary  force,”  and  their  unique 
service  in  bringing  large  audiences  under  the  sound  of 
the  Gospel  cannot  be  over-estimated.  It  would  be  a 
difficult  thing  to  find  a single  medical  station  throughout 
the  non-Christian  world  which  lacked  patients.  There 
is  this  further  fact,  too,  to  be  noted,  that  through 
the  work  of  hospitals  and  dispensaries  practically  every 
class  of  society  is  reached,  including  many  who  would 
not  otherwise  be  brought  under  the  influence  of  the 
Gospel.  Again  and  again  have  patients  of  the  higher 
classes  been  treated  in  Mission  Hospitals,  and  by  means 
of  their  stay  been  brought  to  better  appreciate  the  work 
of  the  missionaries.  Equally  also  have  the  poorer  people, 
even  to  the  very  lowest,  come  within  hearing  of  the 
saving  message,  through  their  attendance  at  these  healing 
institutions.  It  is  safe  to  say  that  there  is  no  grade  of 
heathen  society  that  does  not  stand  to  receive  some  echo 
of  the  Gospel  through  the  agency  of  Medical  Missions. 
The  result  is  that  the  Gospel  is  carried  far  and  wide  and 
the  grateful  patients  act  as  agents  in  spreading  a know- 


80  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

ledge  of  the  Medical  Mission,  and  bringing  back  with 
them  patients  similarly  afflicted.  Moreover,  of  those 
who  become  converted  as  well  as  healed,  many  go  back 
to  their  native  places  there  to  tell  others  of  the  love  of 
God  and  gather  together  a company  of  believers. 

2.  By  exhibiting  an  object  lesson  of  the  Gospel. — There 
is  no  view  more  hopelessly  antiquated  concerning  the 
work  of  Medical  Missions  than  that  which  lays  all 
the  emphasis  upon  their  value  as  a means  of  opening 
up  the  way  of  the  Gospel,  as  Dr  Harold  Balme 
has  pointed  out,  or  in  other  words,  that  their 
greatest  missionary  function  is  comparable  to  the 
entering  “ wedge.”  Such  a teaching  as  that,  in  the 
very  nature  of  things,  relegates  Medical  Missions  to  an 
entirely  subordinate  position  in  the  missionary  enter- 
prise. It  stamps  their  service  as  something  which, 
while  useful  as  an  auxiliary  agency,  is  not  an  essential 
and  integral  element  in  the  presentation  of  the  Christian 
Gospel.  Judged  by  a doctrine  of  that  kind,  Medical 
Missions  stand  at  once  to  lose  greatly  in  their  importance 
to  the  work  of  establishing  Christianity  in  non-Christian 
lands.  Their  contribution  to  the  great  end  becomes 
partial  and  passing,  and  their  share  in  the  ultimate 
triumph  one  that  is  entirely  secondary. 

Now,  if  Medical  Missions  mean  anything  at  all,  we 
venture  to  urge  very  strongly  that  they  mean  infinitely 
more  than  the  teaching  just  referred  to  would  assign  to 
them.  True,  indeed,  as  we  have  seen  already,  they  are 
calculated  to  render  a unique  service  in  finding  a path 
for  the  Gospel  message,  and  in  meeting  the  problem 
of  prejudice  and  superstition.  But  their  work  does 
not  end  there.  Granted  that  Medical  Missions  are 
rightly  presented,  and  their  functions  brought  adequately 
into  play,  and  it  becomes  self-evident  that  they  are  a 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


81 


living  object  lesson  of  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ.  They 
do  not  just  make  a way  for  the  Gospel.  They  embody 
it,  give  to  it  a tangible  expression,  and  by  word  and 
touch,  present  the  Gospel  to  a world  of  needy  sinners. 
Medical  Missions,  as  it  were,  take  the  marvellous  story 
of  redeeming  love,  and  give  to  it  a graphic  portraiture, 
and  then  hang  this  up,  and  interpret  it  to  men.  Far  from 
exhausting  their  usefulness,  when  the  Gospel  has  gained 
a foothold  in  some  new  territory  they  go  on  to  a yet 
more  glorious  service  in  so  delineating  the  beauty  of 
the  Gospel  that  the  indifferent  are  attracted  and  the 
sceptical  won. 

And  there  is  surely  no  strangeness  about  this.  Medical 
Missions  are  not  exploiting  some  new  scheme,  or  marking 
out  an  untried  pathway  in  the  contribution  they  thus 
bring  to  the  forces  of  the  Gospel.  It  has  been  shown 
already  that  their  supreme  glory  rests  in  the  fact  that 
theirs  is  the  Christ  method,  the  pathway  of  the  great 
Exemplar.  In  Jesus  Christ  and  in  the  manner  in  which 
He  incorporated  their  peculiar  service  in  His  ministry 
to  man,  Medical  Missions  secure  their  rightful  position 
in  the  work  of  the  Gospel.  Glance  back  again  but  for 
an  instant  to  that  point  when  Christ  was  appealed  to  by 
His  forerunner  to  declare  whether  He  were  the  Messiah 
or  not,  and  we  see  that  His  answer  assumed  the  exact 
form,  so  it  may  reverently  be  said,  of  a Medical 
Missionary  incident.  In  a way  that  was  both  graphic 
and  wonderful  Our  Lord  permitted  the  ministry  of 
healing  to  take  a most  vital  place  in  the  revelation  that 
He  gave  of  Himself,  and  by  so  doing  made  it  clear  to 
all  His  subsequent  followers  how  valuable  was  the 
position  they  should  assign  to  the  healing  of  the  sick 
in  the  setting  forth  of  the  Gospel. 

Moreover,  this  aspect  of  the  value  of  Medical  Missions 

F 


82  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


requires  no  argument  to  prove  its  reasonable  character. 
Indeed,  as  was  shown  in  an  earlier  chapter,  the  Medical 
Missionary  method  is  one  of  the  most  wholesome  sanity. 
Consider  for  a moment  the  necessities  occasioned  by  the 
condition  of  the  non-Christian  peoples  to  whom  we  seek 
to  bear  the  Gospel.  For  long  centuries  their  powers 
of  spiritual  perception  have  been  dimmed  by  ignorance 
and  superstition.  In  many  respects  they  are  in  this 
particular,  child  races.  Their  introduction,  therefore,  to 
a new  faith  needs  to  be  carefully  conducted  lest  their 
ideas  concerning  it  become  confused.  It  becomes 
an  obvious  necessity  to  interpret  the  new  teaching  by 
means  of  some  practical  demonstration  of  its  essential 
characteristics. 

Here,  then,  is  found  both  the  place  and  power  of  Medical 
Missions.  Taking  that  sublime  word  “ God  is  Love,” 
this  method  writes  it  in  the  language  of  kindly  deed, 
healing  mercy,  and  compassionate  sacrifice,  and  it  be- 
comes alive  with  a meaning  that  the  Hindu,  the  Moham- 
medan,the  Buddhist,  and  the  Animist  all  find  no  difficulty 
in  understanding,  because  they  have  been  taught  it  by 
way  of  illustration.  Dr  Arthur  Lankester  of  North  India, 
once  said  : “If  we  want  to  write  the  teaching  of  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  in  very  big  letters,  so  that  those  who  cannot 
read  theology,  and  do  not  understand  science  or  philo- 
sophy can  read  it  very  easily,  the  best  way  of  doing 
it  whether  it  be  for  an  individual,  a village,  a town,  a 
district,  or  a nation,  is  to  start  medical  aid  for  the  poor.” 
And  as  a touching  instance  of  the  truth  of  these  words 
we  may  cite  the  saying  of  some  pain-worn  Persians 
to  whom  a Christian  lady  traveller  was  administering 
some  simple  remedy  : “ We  have  no  priest  doctor  in 
the  likeness  of  Jesus.” 

A few  years  ago  there  occurred  in  the  city  of  Tai  Yuan 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


83 


Fu,  North  China,  a serious  outbreak  of  a most  malignant 
type  of  fever.  It  quickly  spread,  and  amongst  the 
worst  sufferers  were  the  poverty-stricken  and  homeless 
beggars  who  are  such  a characteristic  element  in  Chinese 
cities.  Neglected  and  loathsome,  these  poor  creatures 
crept  to  dust  heaps,  there  to  linger  out  their  days  of 
misery  and  sickness.  On  the  part  of  their  heathen  fellow- 
countrymen  nothing  was  done  for  them  Who  would 
care  to  move  a finger  for  such  as  these  ! In  that  city, 
however,  there  were  medical  missionaries,  and  it  did  not 
take  them  long  to  make  up  their  minds  that  something 
must  be  done.  Be  they  ever  so  low,  these  poor  degraded 
beggars  were  still  men,  and  men  with  bodies  to  succour 
and  souls  to  save.  And  so  the  doctors  got  hold  of 
a disused  open-air  theatre  stage,  opposite  to  the  gates  of 
their  hospital,  and  to  that  place  they  conveyed  a group 
of  these  beggar  sufferers.  Their  filth  and  horrible 
condition  were  impossible  to  describe.  But  they  were 
ill  with  a malignant  fever,  and  their  only  chance  of 
life  lay  in  steady  unremitting  attention  on  the  part  of 
the  doctors.  And  so  these  Christian  men,  with  their 
own  hands,  carried  food  and  medicine  to  them,  and  day 
by  day  lavished  as  much  kindness  and  skill  upon  them  as 
if  they  had  been  patients  of  wealth  and  position.  Some, 
alas,  died,  yet  even  in  their  cases  were  the  last  hours 
less  pitiable  than  they  would  have  been.  Others  re- 
covered, and  were  full  of  gratitude  to  the  Good 
Samaritans  of  another  nation  who  had  bestowed  such 
love  upon  them. 

Now,  wherein  lay  the  chief  and  most  permanent  value 
of  that  incident  ? Was  it  in  the  few  lives  saved  from 
death  ? Nay,  not  in  that,  but  rather  in  the  telling 
illustration  of  the  Gospel  that  was  given  in  this  way  to 
the  whole  of  that  heathen  city.  It  was  a revelation  of 


84 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


something  utterly  new,  and  of  a message  that  was  ab- 
solutely foreign  to  any  doctrine  of  heathen  belief  and 
practice.  Men  who  had  before  been  indifferent  to  the 
missionary  teaching,  or  openly  sceptical,  now  began  to 
ask  whether  after  all  the  Christian  religion  was  not 
worth  having.  And  by  this  simple  yet  thrilling  piece  of 
Christian  medical  heroism,  the  heathen  of  Tai  Yuan 
Fu  obtained  a bigger  insight  into  the  realities  of  the 
Gospel  than  years  of  ordinary  evangelistic  preaching 
would  have  given  to  them.  Let  us  therefore  enlarge 
our  whole  conception  of  the  spiritual  utility  of  Medical 
Missions,  and  conscious  of  the  remarkable  potentialities 
with  which  God  has  endowed  them,  do  our  utmost  to 
hasten  their  spread  throughout  the  world. 

3.  By  securing  time  for  repeated  presentation  of  the 
Gospel , both  by  lip  and  life. — This  is  especially  true 
regarding  the  work  of  mission  hospitals.  Daily  and  con- 
stantly in  these  institutions  the  Gospel  is  lived  before 
the  patients  in  loving  acts  and  healing  care.  From 
the  lips  of  doctor,  nurse,  and  native  evangelist  the  truths 
of  the  Gospel  are  explained,  and  the  special  spiritual 
need  of  each  patient  is  dealt  with.  Thus  during  the  time 
spent  in  the  hospital  abundant  opportunity  is  given  for 
bringing  patients  into  touch  with  Christian  teaching. 
Furthermore,  the  experience  of  the  dispensaries  leads 
also  in  the  same  direction.  The  out-patients  who  attend 
them  require  to  come  most  commonly,  not  once  or  twice, 
but  many  times,  and  each  occasion  offers  to  the  doctor 
a renewed  opportunity  for  explaining  the  Gospel.  Then, 
too,  as  the  medical  missionary  visits  in  the  homes  of  the 
people,  Christ  is  held  forth  as  the  Saviour  of  souls,  and 
by  conversations  the  means  are  secured  for  opening 
up  the  truth  to  the  inmates  of  whole  households. 

Finally  there  is  this  all-powerful  reinforcement  to  the 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  85 

spoken  word — that  there  exists  between  the  doctor  and 
his  hearers  a bond  of  practical  sympathy.  The  fact 
that  he,  as  a doctor,  is  seeking  to  heal  them  provides  the 
ample  reason  why  he,  as  a missionary,  should  receive 
their  attention  to  the  word  he  has  to  preach.  “ The 
physician  who  has  given  his  knowledge  and  strength 
to  the  sick  man  has  a special  right  to  speak  to  him  on 
the  state  of  his  soul,  and  the  patient  will  listen  to  him 
with  a confidence  and  affection  which  he  can  have  for 
no  other  man.”  Suspicion  is  replaced  by  trust,  and  a 
sure  basis  laid  for  successful  evangelistic  effort. 

For  a moment  or  two  let  us  glance  at  some  examples 
of  the  spiritual  success  attending  the  work  of  Medical 
Missions.  Directing  our  observation  to  China,  we  cull 
an  instance  from  the  records  of  the  Tai  Yuan  Fu  Medical 
Mission  of  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society.  Years  ago 
there  went  back  from  that  hospital  to  his  village  home  one 
of  the  many  eye  patients  whose  sight  had  been  restored  by 
an  operation  by  Dr  E.  H.  Edwards.  Reaching  his  home 
he  spread  reports  of  how  “ the  blind  were  made  to  see.” 
Six  blind  men,  hearing  this,  resolved  to  get  a guide  and 
to  take  a long  thirteen-day  journey  to  the  hospital  at 
Tai  Yuan  Fu.  This  meant  crossing  mountain  passes 
some  four  thousand  feet  high  ! Each  man  took  hold 
of  the  staff  of  the  man  in  front  of  him  and  thus  all  were 
led  by  the  one  guide.  Alas  ! when  they  got  to  the 
hospital  only  two  stood  any  chance  of  a cure,  and  even 
in  their  cases  the  chance  was  remote.  These  two  re- 
mained, however,  six  months,  and  attended  in  that  time 
the  daily  services.  Gradually  the  light  of  the  Gospel 
dawned  upon  them,  and  ere  they  started  back  home,  sad 
to  say,  still  blind,  they  had  confessed  Christ  by  baptism. 
They  were  urged  to  witness  for  Christ  and  did  so 
very  faithfully,  one  of  them  even  arousing  not  a little 


86 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


opposition  amongst  his  own  family.  In  time  this  one  was 
sent  to  the  school  for  the  blind  at  Peking,  and  there 
developed  into  a good  evangelist.  Going  back  after- 
wards to  his  home  he  was  led  into  work  with  a mis- 
sionary of  the  L.M.S.  and  by  God’s  blessing  upon  their 
united  efforts  there  is  now  a Church  of  over  three  hundred 
members  in  the  district. 

Another  instance  is  found  in  the  letter  of  a missionary 
who  wrote  home  from  a Chinese  centre,  saying  that 
“ nearly  all  admitted  to  the  Church  in  this  city  have 
been  brought  in  through  the  hospital.”  And  again  we 
have  it  recorded  that  as  the  outcome  of  the  cure  of  a 
man  some  years  before  at  the  Amoy  Presbyterian 
Mission  Hospital  there  were  formed  no  less  than  seven 
Christian  Churches  with  a membership  of  from  thirty  to 
a hundred  in  each. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  understand  in  the  light  of  facts 
like  these  that  the  late  Rev.  Dr  Griffith  John  said  on 
one  occasion  that  he  regarded  the  London  Mission 
Hospital  at  Hankow,  the  station  at  which  he  laboured, 
as  a “ great  spiritual  power ! ” How  true  seem  the 
words  of  the  celebrated  lady  traveller,  the  late  Mrs 
Isabella  Bird  Bishop  : — 

“ Perhaps  one  may  say  that  of  all  the  agencies  now 
in  use  in  the  world  in  heathen  countries,  the  Medical 
Mission  is  the  most  efficient  in  bringing  those  people 
who  are  sitting  in  darkness,  and  in  the  shadow  of  death, 
to  know  that  the  Dayspring  from  on  high  hath  visited 
us  to  guide  their  feet  into  the  way  of  peace.” 

The  limitations  of  space  forbid  our  drawing  on  the 
experience  of  other  Mission  Fields  for  additional  proofs 
of  the  spiritual  fruitfulness  of  Medical  Missions.  Yet, 
we  venture  to  think,  there  will  be  few,  if  any,  who 
question  the  general  application  of  the  foregoing  character 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


87 


to  this  missionary  service  wherever  carried  on  as  it  ought 
to  be.  As  the  late  Rev.  Dr  Pierson  wrote  : — 

“ Medical  Missions  are  not  only  destructive  of  super- 
stition and  false  religion,  they  are  constructive  of  a new 
faith  and  life.  Body  and  soul  and  spirit  have  all  been 
poisoned  and  diseased  by  sin,  and  redemption  must 
briii"  salvation  to  the  whole  man.” 

O ♦ 

Long  may  the  spiritual  bow  of  Medical  Missions  abide 
in  its  strength  ! 

II.  The  Christian  Social  value  of  Medical  Missions. 

Up  till  now  we  have  been  concerned  with  a considera- 
tion of  the  supreme  evangelistic  value  of  Medical  Missions, 
and  have  seen  that  therein  was  to  be  found  their  crowning 
glory.  It  is  equally  true,  however,  that  in  the  back- 
ground there  are  numerous  indirect  and  secondary 
influences,  arising  out  of  this  work,  which  give  to  the 
subject  an  expansiveness  of  scope,  a fulness  of  signi- 
ficance, and  a largeness  of  purpose  not  otherwise  grasped. 
To  quote  the  words  of  Dr  J.  S.  Dennis  in  his  fine  work, 
“ Christian  Missions  and  Social  Progress  ” : — 

“ Missionary  effort  has  a sociological  sphere  to  fill  as 
well  as  an  evangelistic.  It  has  necessarily  to  come  into 
contact  with  corrupt  social  customs,  non-Christian 
practices,  barbaric  ideals,  and  a complex  heathen  en- 
vironment. ...  It  therefore  becomes  clear  that  the 
mission  of  Christianity  is  to  transform  and  elevate  man, 
as  well  in  his  associate  relationships  as  in  his  individual 
life,  and  to  build  up  throughout  the  heathen  world  a 
civilisation  whose  centre  is  a church  of  redeemed  souls, 
and  whose  circumference  is  only  measured  by  the  radiat- 
ing influences  of  Christian  teaching  and  practice.” 

Now,  in  the  very  essence  of  things,  the  work  of  Medical 
Missions  is  that  branch  of  missionary  activity  which 


88 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


perhaps  more  than  any  other  touches  this  social  side 
of  missions.  The  medical  missionary  deals  with  all 
aspects  of  human  nature.  He  comes  into  contact  with 
all  classes  of  men,  and  his  task  is  one  which  peculiarly 
gives  to  him  the  position  and  power  for  dealing  with 
many  of  the  complex  social  problems  of  heathenism. 
Thus  it  is  that  Medical  Missions  have  exercised  broad 
secondary  influences  in  antagonising  evil  customs  and 
stimulating  reform  measures  in  the  body  politic  of 
heathen  lands.  The  following  are  three  prominent 
instances  of  the  ways  whereby  they  discharge  this 
service  : — 

1.  By  weakening  such  systems  as  caste. — There  is  no 
greater  social  evil  in  India.  Sir  Monier  Williams  says  : 
“ It  is  difficult  for  us  Europeans  to  realise  how  pride 
of  caste,  as  a divine  ordinance,  interpenetrates  the  whole 
being  of  the  Hindu.  . . . Caste  rules,  which  we  believe  to 
be  a hindrance  to  the  acceptance  of  true  religion,  are 
to  him  the  very  essence  of  all  religion.  They  influence 
his  whole  life  and  conduct.” 

How  then  does  Medical  Mission  work  weaken  this 
system  ? 

(a)  It  makes  the  relief  of  sickness  independent  of  caste 
distinctions. — Gathered,  waiting  for  the  medical  mission- 
ary, may  frequently  be  seen,  side  by  side,  “ the  Brahmin, 
Sudra,  and  Shanar,  the  Pulayer  and  Pariah,  the  Devil 
Worshipper,  the  Worshipper  of  Siva — men  and  women 
of  all  castes  and  creeds.”  This  mixing  up  is  absolutely 
in  defiance  of  caste  rules,  which  places  barriers  between 
man  and  man,  destroying  individual  liberty.  By  the 
medical  missionary  all  are  treated  alike,  and  in  obtain- 
ing the  needed  aid  caste  is  broken,  and  its  influence  in 
time  is  destroyed.  It  was  the  privilege  of  the  author 
some  years  ago  to  spend  a few  days  as  a visitor  at  the 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


89 


Medical  Mission  at  Palwal,  North  India,  conducted  by 
Dr  Vincent  Thomas.  At  the  service  which  preceded 
the  medical  work  he  saw  one  morning,  seated  close  to 
each  other  in  the  group  of  out-patients,  a Brahmin,  a 
man  of  the  shopkeeper  caste,  two  or  three  low  caste  men, 
representatives  of  the  agricultural  caste,  a Parsee,  a 
Mahommedan,  and  some  Christians.  What  other 
missionary  method  would  prove  so  successful  in  drawing 
all  these  together,  and  causing  them,  for  the  time,  at 
least,  to  think  less  of  their  differences  ! 

(b)  It  illustrates  and  teaches  human  sympathy. — Caste 
eradicates  human  sympathies  and  destroys  compassion. 
To  relieve  a poor  sufferer  must  never  be  done,  if  by  so 
doing  caste  will  be  broken.  On  the  contrary  the  meri- 
torious course  is  to  “ pass  by  on  the  other  side  ” and 
leave  him  to  die.  Medical  Missions  stand  for  the  exact 
opposite  of  this,  and  thus  are  surely  undermining  caste 
by  the  expulsive  power  of  a new  and  loftier  principle. 
Writing  a year  or  two  back  on  “ Caste  and  Medical 
Missions,”  the  Rev.  F.  W.  Hale,  of  North  India,  used 
these  words  : “ Caste  is  bolted  and  riveted  down  upon 
Indian  society  and  at  times  we  feel  discouraged  about 
it  and  are  apt  to  think  that  no  assault  will  tell ; but 
there  are  forces  at  work  which  are  wearing  down  weak 
places  . . . and  of  religious  forces  there  is  none  more 
potent  and  persistent  to  this  end  than  the  work  of  a 
Medical  Mission.  Wherever  you  have  a live  Medical 
Mission  you  have  carried  a sap  under  the  very  walls  of 
caste.” 

2.  By  acting  as  centres  for  Public  Health  reform. — 
As  surely  as  cleanliness  is  next  to  Godliness,  so  certainly 
is  a foul  environment  incompatible  with  the  laws  and 
practice  of  Christianity.  It  is  likewise  true  that  a 
condition  of  public  health  is  in  close  relationship  to  the 


90 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


successful  diffusion  of  truths  concerning  spiritual  health. 
How  often  is  spiritual  teaching  altogether  foiled  and 
blighted  by  the  utter  neglect  of  all  physical  hygiene  ! 
So  even  the  prevention  of  sickness,  just  as  much  as  its 
cure,  comes  within  the  scope  of  the  medical  missionary, 
who  is  of  necessity  a sanitary  reformer,  and  who,  by  so 
doing,  is  meeting  a tremendous  need  in  Mission  lands, 
while  he  supremely  contributes  to  the  spread  of 
Christianity. 

The  need  is  vast.  “ China  is  notorious  for  the  neglect 
of  proper  sanitation  ...  in  times  of  sickness  the  con- 
dition of  sufferers  ...  is  extremely  deplorable.” 
Indian  villages  afford  examples  of  the  entire  disregard 
for  all  sanitary  precautions.  “ In  one  and  the  same 
tank  clothes  are  washed  and  people  bathe  themselves, 
while,  also,  here  is  to  be  found  the  supply  of  water  for 
cooking  and  drinking.”  In  large  towns  the  high  in- 
fantile death-rate  is  due  mainly  to  ignorance  and  all 
absence  of  sanitation.  “ In  some  villages  of  Ceylon, 
chiefly  owing  to  the  filth  and  immorality  of  the  people, 
there  is  hardly  a home  free  from  some  kind  of  painful 
sickness.  Thus  arise  cholera,  plague,  and  other 
diseases.” 

Now  it  will  need  no  enforcement  to  make  clear  the 
obvious  influence  that  Medical  Missions  must  exert 
in  correcting  these  grievous  conditions.  The  medical 
missionary  is  naturally  the  one  who  is  qualified  to  give 
the  needed  instruction  for  the  introduction  of  a better 
system.  He  it  is  to  whom  the  local  officials  often  turn 
for  advice  upon  health  measures  by  local  officials,  and 
through  the  suggestions  he  can  make  many  a baneful 
source  of  disease  and  suffering  can  be  mitigated  or 
banished.  Hence  do  we  here  find  another  of  those 
valuable  by-products  of  Medical  Missions  which  is 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


91 


calculated  to  yield  such  important  results  in  the 
purifying  and  elevating  of  the  lives  of  the  nations. 

3.  By  imparting  a new  standard  to  human  life,  especially 
that  of  womanhood. — Philanthropy  in  the  sense  in  which 
we  understand  it  has  no  place  in  the  world  of  heathenism 
and  Mahommedanism.  As  has  been  said  : “ Outside 
of  Christendom,  ‘ every  man  for  himself  ’ is  the  rule 
pretty  much  everywhere.  The  sense  of  a common 
humanity  is  absent.”  Particularly  in  the  direction 
of  womanhood  is  this  very  noticeable.  Nothing  is  so 
generally  a characteristic  of  the  various  divisions  of 
the  non-Christian  world  than  the  degradation  of  its 
womenfolk.  Consequently  it  is  to  the  lady  doctors 
working  in  Zenana  Medical  Missions  that  there  comes 
one  of  the  most  striking  opportunities  for  exerting  a 
beneficial  and  uplifting  influence  in  this  connection. 
Treated  as  of  less  value  than  a cow,  degraded  by  count- 
less indignities  and  barbarities,  and  neglected  in  time 
of  sickness,  the  lot  of  a Hindu  woman  is  inexpressibly 
sad.  The  care  of  medical  missionaries  for  sick  women 
is  thus  a new  thought  altogether  to  Hindu  men,  and 
means  far  more  than  can  be  told  to  the  women  of  these 
lands.  Moreover,  by  establishing  this  new  standard 
for  woman’s  life,  one  of  the  greatest  strongholds  of 
heathenism  is  attacked,  and  superstition  undermined  at 
the  very  centre  of  a nation’s  life. 

The  stimulus  supplied  to  purely  philanthropic  efforts 
by  the  work  of  medical  missionaries  has  also  been 
marked.  Who  can  measure  the  contribution  that 
Medical  Missions  are  making  year  by  year  to  the  fight 
that  is  being  waged  against  the  ravages  of  disease  and 
suffering ! In  combating  the  deadly  plague,  in  in- 
stilling right  principles  for  the  prevention  and  treatment 
of  disease,  in  searching  for  the  cure  of  sleep-sickness  and 


92 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


ministering  to  the  needs  of  its  victims,  as  well  as  in 
numerous  other  directions,  Medical  Missions  are  taking 
a noble  position  in  the  realm  of  scientific  medicine,  and 
setting  a high  standard  before  the  awakening  sense 
of  philanthropy  in  non-Christian  lands.  It  is  therefore 
clear  that  the  results  accruing  to  the  social  labours  of 
Medical  Missions  are  broad  and  potent,  and  of  a nature 
calculated  to  claim  the  fullest  and  most  whole-hearted 
support. 


CHAPTER  VI 


the  value  of  medical  missions  ( continued ) 

“ Educate  ! Educate  ! Educate  ! ” 

— The  late  Rev.  Griffith  John,  D.D. 

III.  The  Educational  value  of  Medical  Missions. 

(A)  As  a Christian  Educational  Agency. 

There  is  hardly  any  single  direction  in  which  Medical 
Missions  have  claimed  more  attention  or  offered  more 
striking  and  unique  opportunities  during  the  past  decade 
than  in  educational  work.  On  every  hand  missionaries 
have  been  faced  with  an  awakening  world.  Nations 
that  were  hopelessly  behind,  and  utterly  outside  the 
stream  of  modem  learning  but  a generation  ago,  have 
been  stirred  with  a mighty  thirst  for  “ Western  Know- 
ledge,” and  are  fast  on  the  road  to  acquire  it.  Old 
ideals  have  been  dethroned,  ancient  systems  of  know- 
ledge displaced  ; and  although  a vast  amount  of  inertia 
and  conservatism  yet  prevails,  it  is  fair  to  say  that  the 
world  to-day  is  not  far  from  being  a world  at  school. 

Now  it  will  need  no  argument  to  point  out  how 
immensely  important  it  is  from  the  Christian  standpoint 
that  the  sources  from  which  the  new  knowledge  is  derived 
should  be  Christian  and  not  agnostic  or  heathen.  Indeed 
it  may  be  said  that  from  every  aspect  it  is  of  supreme 
importance  that  the  religious  and  moral  element  should 
enter  vitally  into  the  world’s  new  era  of  education. 

93 


94 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Never  were  there  truer  words  uttered  than  those  by 
Lord  Macaulay  when  he  said  that  “ nine -tenths  of  the 
evils  that  afflict  humanity  come  from  a union  of  high 
intelligence  with  low  desire.”  And  once  let  the  world 
quench  its  thirst  at  springs  of  knowledge  which  are 
in  their  essence  materialistic  and  non-Christian,  and  the 
whole  race  will  suffer  from  a great  dehumanising  influence 
and  be  removed  yet  further  from  God.  Hence  the  pre- 
eminent value  of  the  work  that  Christian  missionary  edu- 
cators can  accomplish,  the  need  for  which  is  clearly  stated 
in  the  following  words  from  the  Report  of  the  Third 
Commission  of  the  World  Missionary  Conference : — 

“ With  due  recognition  of  the  many  elements  of  truth 
and  value  in  the  non- Christian  systems  of  religion  and 
ethics,  we  should  nevertheless  be  faithless — not  alone 
to  our  religion,  but  to  the  facts  of  experience — if  we  did 
not  at  this  time  re-affirm  our  conviction  that  the  educa- 
tion of  the  world  demands  for  its  highest  and  best  develop- 
ment those  elements  of  truth  which  are  the  peculiar 
contribution  of  Christianity  to  the  world’s  thought  and 
life.” 

Now  if  there  is  one  branch  of  learning,  one  division 
in  the  great  school  of  knowledge  to  which  all  these  con- 
siderations apply  more  forcibly  than  to  any  other,  it 
is  surely  to  that  of  medicine.  For,  as  one  writer  has 
said,  whilst  Medical  knowledge  can  be  put  to  the  noblest 
purposes,  it  can  also  be  degraded  to  the  lowest.  The 
ability  to  heal  disease,  the  possession  of  skill  to  win 
back  health  to  those  from  whom  it  has  flown  is  something 
that  confers  enormous  responsibility,  which  may  be  used 
or  misused.  If  it  be  allied  to  Christian  truths  and 
principles  it  will  be  regarded  as  a solemn  trust  and 
discharged  as  in  the  sight  of  God.  If  it  have  no  such 
alliance,  if  it  be  something  which  is  held  by  itself  alone, 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  05 

then  it  becomes  an  instrument  of  good  which  all  too 
frequently  undergoes  a metamorphosis  into  a weapon 
of  evil.  Accordingly  how  vital  is  the  necessity  that 
medical  education  on  the  Mission  Field  should  be  in 
the  hands  of  medical  missionaries,  and  given  by  Christian 
teachers,  who  will  bequeath  the  sacred  possession  safe- 
guarded and  interpenetrated  with  Christian  knowledge 
and  principle. 

Medical  Missions  therefore  appear  before  us  at  this 
stage  as  a medical  educational  agency,  and  reveal  their 
value  in  that  connection  in  the  two  following  ways  : — 

1.  By  supplying  Scientific  Medical  Knoivledge. — To 
those  who  have  followed  the  points  brought  out  in  an 
earlier  chapter  the  need  for  such  knowledge  will  come  as 
no  surprise.  The  vast  heathen  and  Moslem  world  has 
been  seen  to  be  in  the  grip  of  ignorant,  barbaric,  and 
superstitious  ideas  concerning  the  human  body  and  its 
ailments.  Plainly  therefore  an  agency  which  can  clear 
away  erroneous  views  and  create  a system  of  scientific 
medical  practice  is  one  which  is  bound  to  prove  of  im- 
mense beneficial  value.  Medical  Missions  can,  and  do, 
perform  this  very  necessary  function,  and  at  the  hands 
of  men  and  women  medical  missionaries — many  of  whom 
possess  the  highest  medical  qualifications — the  non- 
Christian  world  is  receiving  to-day  the  great  and  blessed 
gift  of  medical  science. 

2.  By  training  Native  Medical  Students  and  raising 
up  Native  Medical  Missionaries. — For  it  is  not  enough 
to  carry  to  a people  a system  of  knowledge,  their 
own  sons  and  daughters  must  be  trained  to  pro- 
pagate it.  Only  by  so  doing  can  the  value  of  the  gift 
be  rendered  permanent  and  enduring.  It  is  therefore 
in  this  yet  further  way  that  Medical  Missions  prove  their 
great  value  as  a Christian  educational  agency. 


96 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Writing  recently,  Dr  Duncan  Main,  of  China,  said  : 
“Now  is  our  opportunity,  and  our  opportunity  is  our 
responsibility.  China  is  awake,  and  she  needs,  and  I 
believe,  wants,  Christian  light  and  teaching,  and  I 
am  sure  that  there  is  no  better  way  of  giving  her  them 
than  through  a Christian  Medical  School,  which  is  truly 
missionary  and  evangelistic.” 

All  that  can  be  said  in  urging  the  need  and  value  of 
Medical  Missions  as  a whole  can  be  said  for  this  par- 
ticular branch  of  that  work  “ a fortiori.”  Indeed  we 
would  go  further  and  say  that  there  is  here  to  be  found 
one  of  the  cardinal  elements  in  the  entire  medical 
missionary  plan  of  campaign.  Never  can  it  be  thought 
that  by  the  service  of  medical  missionaries  sent  out  from 
the  home  base  all  that  needs  to  be  done  by  Medical 
Missions  can  be  accomplished.  Pre-eminently  there 
must  be  called  into  being  the  work  of  those  sons  and 
daughters  of  the  Church  on  the  Mission  Field  who, 
having  been  trained  in  medicine,  can  with  the  greatest 
effectiveness,  and  with  the  most  enduring  features, 
incorporate  the  service  of  Medical  Missions  in  the 
world-wide  spread  of  the  Evangel  of  Christ. 

At  the  Medical  Missionary  Conference  held  in  Edin- 
burgh, 1910,  all  that  has  just  been  said  received  ample 
confirmation  by  the  following  three  Resolutions,  which 
were  unanimously  adopted  : — 

(1)  “ That  more  and  more  thoroughly  equipped 
medical  schools  should  be  established  in  suitable  mission 
centres,  and  that  as  many  natives  as  possible  should  be 
trained  for  the  various  branches  of  medical  missionary 
work,  for  the  double  reason  : — 

(a)  Because  the  work  gathering  round  mission 
hospitals,  and  the  work  of  medical  evangelisation,  can 
never  be  overtaken  by  foreign  physicians  ; and 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


97 


(b)  Because  the  native  can  reach  his  fellows  in  a way 
in  which  the  foreigner  can  seldom  do  ; is  more  easy 
to  secure  ; is  more  economical  to  support ; and  has 
proved,  in  various  mission  fields,  to  be  capable  of  becom- 
ing an  efficient  nurse,  hospital  assistant,  physician, 
surgeon,  and  medical  missionary,  and  in  many  cases 
in  China  can  occupy  positions  of  importance  in  connec- 
tion with  Government  and  other  public  service,  where 
Christian  medical  men  could  exercise  a powerful  influence 
for  Christ. 

(2)  “ The  meeting  also  is  of  the  unanimous  opinion 
that  the  thoughts  of  some  of  the  more  highly  educated 
natives  should  be  directed  in  increasing  measure  towards 
the  medical  mission  schools  and  colleges  which  are 
springing  up  in  many  lands. 

(3)  “ That  in  the  Christian  medical  colleges  now  being 
established  in  increasing  number  in  China  and  elsewhere, 
the  fullest  co-operation  possible  between  the  missions 
working  in  any  particular  region  is  eminently  desirable, 
and  that  not  only  because  of  the  spiritual  gain  which  is 
sure  to  accompany  union,  but  also  for  the  purpose  of 
economy,  efficiency  and  permanence  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  native  workers  for  the  medical  missionary 
field.” 

These  striking  and  influential  pronouncements  may  be 
accepted  as  the  practically  universal  judgment  of  the 
whole  medical  missionary  force,  and  it  will  thus  be  seen 
how  strong  is  the  feeling  in  favour  of  a development  of 
Christian  medical  education.  Since  the  date  of  the 
above  Conference,  the  urgency  of  this  important  matter, 
particularly  as  it  affects  China,  has  made  itself  felt 
throughout  all  missionary  circles,  and  at  the  Conference 
of  Representatives  of  Missionary  Societies  in  Great 
Britain  and  Ireland,  held  at  Swanwick  in  June  1912, 

G 


98 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


a report  upon  the  subject  of  medical  education  in  China 
was  specially  discussed.  The  matter  is  now  receiving 
the  careful  consideration  of  the  Continuation  Committee 
of  the  World  Missionary  Conference,  who  have  taken 
steps  to  investigate  the  whole  question,  and  this  by 
itself  alone  will  convey  a sense  of  its  immense  import- 
ance. It  is  to  be  greatly  hoped  that  such  will  be  the 
success  attending  the  efforts  to  frame  a policy  for  the 
future  as  shall  ensure  to  the  Christian  Church  the 
maximum  value  from  this  educational  work. 

In  a book  of  this  kind,  it  is  not  possible  to  enter  into 
any  elaborate  detail  regarding  this  aspect  of  Medical 
Missions,  and  we  must  content  ourselves  with  a brief 
reference  only  to  (1)  the  medical  training  of  Indian 
Assistants,  and  (2)  the  problem  of  Medical  Mission 
Colleges  in  China. 

(1)  The  Training  of  Indian  Medical  Assistants  (i.e. 
non-graduates). — It  will  be  recognised  at  once  that  in 
India  we  have  to  do  not  only  with  the  medical  education 
that  may  be  afforded  by  Medical  Missions,  but  to  a far  - 
larger  extent  with  the  education  in  medicine  that  is 
provided  for  by  the  Government.  In  other  words,  that 
the  main  question  as  it  affects  Medical  Missions  is  not  the 
medical  education  of  the  natives,  but  the  training  of  a 
sufficient  supply  of  native  assistants  for  the  present  and 
future  work  of  mission  hospitals  and  dispensaries.  At 
present  there  are  four  Medical  Mission  centres  in  India, 
where  medical  training  of  the  “ Hospital  Assistants  ” or 
“ Sub-Assistant  surgeon  ” grade  is  provided  for  men 
students.  Three  of  these,  viz.,  Miraj  (A.P.M.),  Travan- 
core  (L.M.S.),  and  Jammalamadugu  (L.M.S.),  are  Medical 
Schools  established  by  and  conducted  under  the  auspices 
of  Missionary  Societies.  The  period  of  training  is  four 
years,  and  at  the  close  a school  diploma  is  awarded  to 


99 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

successful  students.  The  point  aimed  at  on  the  pro- 
fessional side  is  equality,  in  the  standard  of  qualification, 
to  that  of  any  similar  Government  institution  ; and 
as  the  Christian  medical  school  will  have  smaller 
numbers  than  the  Government  school,  it  should  afford 
larger  opportunities  for  personal  attention.  A system 
of  Biblical  instruction  prevails  throughout  the  course 
of  study,  and  at  the  end  of  the  training  the  “ Medical 
Evangelists,”  using  that  designation  in  its  missionary 
significance,  pass  into  mission  service  and  are  eligible  for 
the  staffing  of  branch  dispensaries,  and  for  the  work  of 
assistants  in  mission  hospitals.  The  Medical  Missionary 
Association  of  India  through  its  executive  and  principal 
branches  has  endorsed  the  suitability  of  the  Miraj 
school  for  a union  institution  to  be  worked  by  various 
missions,  and  affiliated  to  the  Bombay  University. 

The  fourth  training  centre  is  found  at  Agra,  and 
consists  in  an  institute  carried  on  as  a branch  of  the 
Edinburgh  Medical  Missionary  Society.  Here  the 
students  do  not  receive  their  medical  training  under 
the  auspices  of  the  mission,  but  attend  the  Agra 
Medical  School  of  the  Government  Education  Depart- 
ment, from  which  they  obtain  their  qualification. 
They  pass  through  the  medical  course  in  exactly  the 
same  way  as  non-missionary  students,  receiving  all 
the  while  Bible  training  in  the  institute  for  the  mis- 
sionary side  of  their  vocation. 

Whether,  however,  these  “ Medical  Evangelists  ” 
obtain  their  professional  knowledge  in  a medical 
missionary  school  or  in  a Government  school,  the 
great  importance  of  aiming  at  the  development  of  a 
class  of  assistants  who  will  be  actuated  by  true  mis- 
sionary motives  cannot  be  emphasized  too  strongly. 
What  are  needed  are  not  those  who  at  the  close  of  their 


100  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


training  will  enter  mission  service  because  they  are 
bound  over  to  do  so  for  a given  number  of  years,  but 
those  who  will  of  their  own  free  choice  dedicate  their 
lives  to  the  work  of  Medical  Missions.  The  late  Dr 
Wm.  Huntly,  who  was  for  so  many  years  the  able 
superintendent  of  the  Agra  Institute,  drew  attention 
to  this  point  in  the  July  1912  issue  of  “ Medical  Missions 
in  India,”  and  pleaded  that  “ if  we  are  to  aim  at  having 
assistants  who  will,  in  the  best  sense,  be  co-workers,”- 
then  there  must  be  generated  in  these  training  centres, 
as  their  very  esprit  de  corps,  personal  loyalty  to  the 
cause  of  Christ. 

Our  Indian  Medical  Missions  need  medical  evangelists 
of  this  type.  The  future  success  of  the  work  largely 
hangs  upon  their  efficient  co-operation,  both  missionary 
and  medical.  Without  their  accession  to  the  ranks, 
in  far  greater  numbers  than  hitherto,  it  is  difficult  to  see 
how  the  magnificent  potentialities  of  Medical  Missions 
can  ever  be  adequately  brought  into  play  amongst 
the  innumerable  villages  of  India.  But  given  their 
fellowship  in  the  service,  who  can  measure  the  con- 
tribution that  Medical  Missions  might  go  on  to  make 
to  the  evangelisation  of  India  ? We  would  therefore 
record  our  emphatic  sense  of  the  value  of  these  Medical 
Missionary  training  centres  for  the  equipment  of  a 
native  agency. 

(2)  Medical  Mission  Colleges  in  China. — It  is  well, 
perhaps,  that  we  should  start  by  getting  clear  views 
as  to  what  is  meant  by  these  colleges,  seeing  that, 
unfortunately  there  seems  to  exist  a good  deal  of  mis- 
conception concerning  them.  Too  many  friends  of 
Medical  Missions,  it  is  to  be  feared,  still  have  the  idea 
that  the  work  of  a medical  college  in  connection  with 
a Missionary  Society  in  China  is  something  not 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  101 


genuinely  missionary,  something,  quite  true,  that  may 
be  very  good,  and  very  necessary,  bul  is  not,  after 
all,  real  missionary  work.  Yet  nothing  could  be  farther 
from  the  truth,  nor  more  lacking  in  proof. 

The  one  great  aim  of  a Medical  Mission  college  is 
“ the  furthering  of  the  interests  of  Christian  Missions.” 
As  has  been  pointed  out  already,  their  primary  purpose 
is  to  prepare  native  medical  missionaries.  And  so 
strong  is  the  evangelistic  note  running  through  the 
work  of  these  colleges,  that  it  is  the  yearly  experience 
that  students  who  have  been  admitted  as  non-Christians 
become  Christians  in  case  after  case,  and  are  baptised 
ere  their  course  is  finished.  Bible  classes,  definite 
Christian  instruction  and  practical  evangelistic  work 
figure  as  integral  parts  of  the  curriculum  of  all  these 
institutions,  and  so  the  only  correct  view  to  take  of 
them  is  that  they  are  clear  and  distinct  missionary 
agencies. 

Let  us  for  the  moment  think  of  the  evolution  of  these 
colleges.  From  the  very  beginning  of  medical  mission- 
ary work  in  China  there  was  felt  the  natural  need  for 
trained  assistants.  As  Dr  Duncan  Main  has  said, 
“ Without  trained  natives  it  is  impossible  to  carry  on 
efficient  work  ; we  foreigners  can  do  very  little  without 
our  native  assistants,  and  they  cannot  be  got  unless 
we  train  them.”  And  so  the  earlier  medical  missionaries 
began  to  gather  and  train  their  own  assistants.  In 
the  words  of  the  late  Dr  Stanley  Jenkins,  “ Medical 
education  in  China  is  as  old  as  Medical  Mission  work, 
and  rests  on  a like  basis  of  reason  and  necessity.” 

But  presently  it  became  very  clear  that  though  the 
results  that  were  attained  were  of  a most  encouraging 
nature,  and  of  a degree  calcidated  to  reflect  great  honour 
upon  the  energy  and  resourcefulness  of  the  devoted  men 
and  women  who  took  up  this  work,  yet  that  the  “ one 


102  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


man  medical  school  ” attached  to  a busy  mission  hospital 
was  hopelessly  inadequate.  The  limitations  of  time 
and  strength,  the  increasing  complexity  and  tremendous 
advances  of  medical  science,  the  undermanned  state  of 
almost  every  hospital  centre,  the  incessant  demands 
of  the  medical,  evangelistic,  and  administrative  sides  of 
the  work  of  Medical  Missions,  all  united  to  press  home 
the  fact  that  medical  education  could  not  be  given  to 
the  Chinese  in  any  satisfactory  manner  if  it  had  to  be 
fitted  in,  so  to  speak,  upon  the  top  of  all  these 
other  multifarious  duties.  Moreover,  as  Dr  Jenkins 
pointed  out,  if  the  look  were  directed  to  the  future, 
and  it  were  remembered  that  very  possibly,  nay,  almost 
certainly,  the  coming  medical  men  in  China  will  be 
required  to  hold  a State  recognised  diploma,  then  unless 
the  work  of  medical  education,  with  its  immense 
potentialities,  were  to  be  allowed  to  slip  out  of  the  hands 
of  medical  missionaries,  it  was  of  supreme  importance 
to  so  consolidate  and  standardise  the  work  of  teaching, 
as  to  render  it  possible  to  win  and  retain  the  ablest 
students. 

Accordingly,  there  arose  a movement  amongst  medical 
missionaries  in  China  for  concentrating  the  work  of 
medical  education  in  a few  centres,  where  the  teaching 
could  be  given  by  a group  of  men  or  women  doctors, 
and  where  suitable  and  efficient  equipment  for  training 
purposes  could  be  provided.  The  day  of  small  things 
was  recognised  as  past  and  over,  and  the  need  for 
taking  in  hand  the  work  of  medical  education  in  a 
thoroughly  effective  manner,  more  particularly  in 
view  of  the  birth  of  a new  China,  was  seen  to  be  an 
urgent  necessity.  If  this  was,  however,  to  be  success- 
fully accomplished,  it  became  perfectly  obvious  that 
any  one  society,  under  the  existing  condition  of  mission- 
ary resources,  both  of  staff  and  means,  could  not  under- 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  103 


take  the  task  alone.  To  hope  to  attain,  in  any  satisfactory 
degree,  the  end  desired,  it  was  clear  that  co-operation 
between  Societies  must  be  the  watchword,  and  union 
medical  colleges  be  the  kind  of  schools  established. 
The  China  Medical  Missionary  Association  devoted 
special  consideration  to  this  problem,  and  in  view  of 
the  danger  that  more  of  these  schools  would  be  brought 
into  being  than  could  ever  efficiently  mature,  it  first 
propounded  a scheme  whereby  union  medical  colleges, 
as  carried  on  and  supported  by  the  missionary  body, 
should  be  confined  to  five  centres,  roughly  distributed 
over  the  country.  This  idea  of  concentration  was  un- 
questionably a wise  one,  but  it  seemed  probable,  seeing 
that  a few  other  schools  beyond  the  five  suggested 
by  the  Association  had  gone  beyond  the  point  of 
suggestion,  that  there  would  not  be  quite  such  a limited 
number  as  had  been  proposed.  It  was  therefore  no 
surprise  that  at  the  last  Triennial  Conference  of  the 
Association,  held  in  Peking  last  January,  the  strong 
recommendation  was  adopted  to  concentrate  upon  eight 
Union  Medical  Colleges.  The  subject  of  the  future 
policy  that  is  to  govern  the  work  of  medical  missionary 
education  in  China  is  at  the  present  time  receiving 
special  investigation  by  leaders  in  Medical  Missions, 
both  at  home  and  in  China.  In  this  connection,  special 
mention  must  be  made  of  Dr  Cochrane,  of  the  Union 
Medical  College,  Peking,  to  whom  this  aspect  of  Medical 
Missions  is  greatly  indebted  for  his  tireless  advocacy 
and  splendid  enterprise. 

This,  then,  in  broad  outline,  is  the  present  situation 
of  the  educational  work  of  Medical  Missions  in  China. 
Of  necessity  there  is  a wealth  of  detail  to  which  no 
allusion  has  been  made,  but  sufficient  has  been  said, 
it  is  hoped,  to  draw  attention  to  the  great  value  of 
what  is  being  undertaken  in  this  direction.  Four 


104  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


points  only  require  to  be  noticed  ere  we  pass  from  the 
subject. 

First,  that  at  the  present  moment  the  union  medical 
colleges  established  by  the  various  missions  in  China, 
practically  hold  the  whole  field  of  medical  education 
in  that  great  land.  There  are,  it  is  true,  two  Government 
Colleges,  and  the  Hong  Kong  School  of  Medicine,  but 
for  all  practical  purposes,  the  Medical  Mission  colleges 
are  the  centres  which  to-day  constitute  the  source  of 
China’s  medical  education.  And  therein  lies  at  once 
a great  opportunity  and  a solemn  responsibility.  To 
the  Christian  churches  of  the  West  has  been  given  the 
almost  boundless  opportunity  of  raising  up  in  China 
not  a medical  profession  merely,  but  a medical  profession 
on  the  side  of  Christianity.  Instead  of  the  future 
doctors  of  that  mighty  land  being  educated  by  teachers 
who  have  no  religious  belief,  and  who  will  materialise 
their  students,  Christian  missions  have  now  the  sublime 
occasion  for  impregnating  the  new  medical  era  of  China 
with  Christian  truth  and  teaching.  Can  it  be  questioned 
but  that  in  this  lies  a matchless  opening  for  the  further- 
ance of  the  Gospel  ? But  there  is  this  grave  responsibility 
coupled  with  the  opportunity.  Everything  points  to  the 
fact  that  ere  long  China  will  establish  enough  medical 
schools  of  her  own,  and  her  students  of  medicine 
go  to  those  institutions.  Once  that  point  has  been 
reached,  China’s  plastic  stage  will  be  over,  and  Christian 
higher  education  will  be  reduced  to  the  negligible 
quantity  that  it  is  to-day  in  Japan.  Hence  the 
urgency  of  the  present  situation  cannot  be  over- 
emphasised. We  are  in  a position  of  leadership  and 
influence  now.  A few  years  hence  and  those  functions 
may  no  longer  be  ours. 

Secondly,  the  aim  of  this  work  is  not  to  found  British, 
American  or  Continental  medical  schools  in  China,  but 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  105 


to  train  and  guide  the  people  of  China  themselves  to 
found  their  own  medical  schools.  We  are  indebted  to 
Dr  Duncan  Main  for  laying  stress  upon  this  important 
fact.  It  would  be  altogether  alien  to  the  spirit  of 
missions,  and  would  do  their  cause  a great  dis-service 
were  the  Medical  Mission  colleges  to  proceed  upon  the 
line  of  maintaining  foreign  ascendancy  in  the  teaching 
work  they  establish.  Obviously,  at  first,  the  main 
brunt  of  the  training  and  the  heaviest  end  of  the  responsi- 
bility must  rest  upon  the  medical  missionaries,  but  the 
object  will  always  be  to  train  those  who,  as  soon  as 
they  are  able  to  do  so,  will  take  over  the  burden  and 
the  work  of  training  their  own  fellow  country  people. 
They  will  be  able  to  do  it  far  better,  and  with  greater 
ease.  And  herein  will  be  perceived  the  ultimate 
aim,  not  only  of  our  Medical  Missionary  colleges,  but 
also  of  the  Medical  Mission  hospitals.  The  gradual 
transference  of  such  institutions  from  our  hands  to 
those  of  our  Chinese  Christian  brethren  must  be 
regarded  as  the  great  end  towards  which  we  have 
to  strive.  Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  the  responsi- 
bility of  the  Christian  Church  is  all  the  more  at  the 
present  moment,  inasmuch  as  the  work  of  medical 
education  is  the  training  of  medical  teachers,  those  who 
in  coming  days  will  be  the  professors  and  lecturers 
in  the  medical  schools  of  China.  How  immense  then 
the  importance  that  these  first  teachers  should  be  rightly 
taught,  and  above  all,  established  in  the  Christian  faith. 

Thirdly,  the  course  of  training  gone  through  in  these 
Medical  Mission  colleges  is  in  every  respect  as  thoroughly 
designed  and  executed  as  is  a full  medical  course  in 
the  Homeland.  The  work  of  the  colleges  is  not  a partial 
training  in  medicine  ; it  is  a full  one,  both  in  duration 
and  scope.  The  students  are  conducted  through  just 
the  same  subjects  as  their  western  confreres.  They 


106  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


have  to  pass  examinations  in  early  science  subjects, 
anatomy,  physiology,  medicine,  surgery  and  all  the 
varied  subjects  of  a modern  medical  training.  Their 
text  books,  thanks  to  the  admirable  work  of  the  Publica- 
tion Committee  of  the  China  Medical  Missionary  Associa- 
tion, are  largely  the  standard  text  books  of  Western 
Europe  and  America.  It  is  therefore  manifest  that  the 
work  of  these  Medical  Mission  colleges  is  planted  upon 
the  soundest  basis,  and  that  it  is  calculated  to  inspire 
the  fullest  confidence. 

Fourthly  and  lastly,  the  primary  purpose  of  this 
medical  educational  work  is  to  send  out  native  medical 
missionaries,  and  Christian  medical  practitioners  who 
will  spread  the  Gospel  through  the  healing  of  the  sick. 
It  will  be  readily  admitted  that  the  particular  value 
of  the  training  work  of  medical  missionaries  lies  not 
so  much  in  the  production  of  a succession  of  well- 
educated  Christian  native  practitioners  as  in  the 
raising  up  of  a sufficient  and  ample  supply  of  native 
medical  missionaries.  The  great  mission  of  the  Christian 
Church  is  not  to  educate  but  to  evangelise,  and  its  share 
in  the  propagation  of  learning  must  ever  be  viewed  in 
the  light  of  the  contribution  which  such  work  can  make 
to  the  spread  of  the  Gospel.  To  supply  properly  qualified 
Christian  doctors  is,  in  some  lands,  and  may  be  in  others, 
a perfectly  justifiable  inclusion  in  the  scope  of  the 
church’s  missionary  duty,  but  it  can  never  claim  a 
first  place  in  the  thought  and  effort  of  those  engaged  in 
the  work  of  Christian  Missions.  On  the  other  hand, 
medical  educational  work  that  is  directly  aimed,  in 
spirit  as  well  as  in  letter,  at  multiplying  the  number  of 
indigenous  medical  missionaries  who  will  devote  their 
lives  to  preaching  and  healing,  is  a sphere  of  missionary 
service  which  is  of  first  importance  in  the  claim  it 
makes  upon  the  prayers  and  sympathies  of  the  Church. 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  107 

Yet  not  all  the  students  of  these  colleges  will  become 
medical  missionaries.  Indeed  that  would  not  be  the 
greatest  service  were  they  all  to  so  employ  their  lives. 
Many  of  them  can  do  a most  valuable  work  as  Christian 
doctors,  unattached  in  any  direct  way  to  the  missionary 
enterprise.  Others,  as  we  have  seen  already,  will  leave 
the  colleges  to  become  government  medical  men. 
Several  are  the  ways  whereby  they  may  lay  out  their 
knowledge  for  the  service  of  Christ  and  their  own  people. 
But  whatever  is  done  the  foundation  principle  of  their 
Medical  Mission  colleges  will  be  served,  provided  they 
go  forth  as  propagandists  of  the  Gospel,  by  means  of 
their  healing  skill.  For  that  end  the  work  of  the 
colleges  that  have  trained  them  has  been  solely  brought 
into  being,  and  to  that  lofty  goal  are  its  grandest 
energies  unswervingly  directed. 

With  all  our  hearts  do  we  therefore  commend  and 
support  the  work  of  the  Medical  Mission  College  in 
China.  Its  mission  is  of  the  greatest.  Its  record 
already  is  most  encouraging.  And  given  only  that  the 
Christian  Church  at  home  flags  not  in  its  contribution 
of  life  and  treasure,  this  department  of  Medical  Missions 
in  China  will  prove,  in  coming  days,  one  of  the  most 
fruitful  agencies  for  the  evangelisation  of  the  new 
Republic  of  the  East. 

It  is  therefore  easy  to  see  that  the  value  of  Medical 
Missions,  from  the  standpoint  of  a Christian  educational 
agency,  requires  but  little  demonstration  to  attest  its 
supreme  worth  and  its  essential  importance. 

( B ) As  a Christian  Philanthropic  Agency. 

By  training  the  native  Christian  Church  in  true  Christian 
Philanthropy. — We  here  take  up  an  aspect  of  Medical 
Missions  which,  to  a large  extent,  has  been  obscured, 
and  yet  which  may  claim  to  impart  to  their  service  one 
of  its  most  striking  missionary  values.  It  has  already 


108  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


been  seen  that  Medical  Missions  fulfil  a most  useful 
purpose  in  stimulating  native  philanthropic  effort  on 
the  part  of  heathen  communities.  That,  however,  is 
quite  another  thing  to  the  training  of  the  native  Christian 
Church  in  true  altruism.  The  one  is  an  indirect  bye- 
product  that  is  at  the  most  of  secondary  importance. 
The  other  is  a result  which  has  a profound  significance 
upon  the  whole  future  of  Christianity  on  the  Mission 
Field.  And  it  is  very  necessary  that  we  should  pause  for 
a moment  to  consider  the  nature  of  this  side  of  the 
value  of  Medical  Missions. 

It  may  fairly  be  said  that  whilst  in  the  lands  of 
Christendom,  philanthropic  effort  is  usually  to  be  found 
in  considerable  measure,  e.g.,  hospitals,  asylums,  etc., 
yet  that  there  is  on  the  whole  only  an  indirect  connection 
between  such  ministries  and  the  work  of  the  Christian 
Church.  That  it  is  the  spirit  of  Christianity  and  the 
atmosphere  created  by  it  which  has  given  birth  to, 
and  fostered  all  this  philanthropy,  hardly  any  will 
deny.  But  at  the  same  time  there  is  very  little  evidence 
of  any  close  link  between  the  Church  and  these  mani- 
festations of  man’s  care  for  his  fellows.  And  herein, 
we  venture  to  say,  lies  a matter  calling  for  considerable 
regret. 

How  often  has  the  taunt  been  hurled  against  the 
churches  that  theirs  is  a religion  of  words,  not  deeds. 
That  they  have  no  care  for  the  distressed  and  suffer- 
ing of  this  present  world,  and  solely  concern  them- 
selves about  the  work  of  preparation  for  the  next. 
Mistaken  and  untrue,  no  doubt,  but  who  shall  say  that 
much  of  this  railing  against  the  churches  has  not  been 
caused  by  the  absence  of  any  integral  relation  between 
the  Church  and  philanthrophy  ? And  who  shall 
question  that,  in  the  modern  severance  between  organ- 
ised Christianity  and  some  of  its  fruits,  the  whole 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  109 


cause  of  the  Evangel  in  the  lands  of  Christendom  has 
suffered  a grievous  handicap  ? We  have  but  to  go 
back  to  the  genesis  of  Christianity  to  find  how  both 
word  and  deed  were  indissolubly  bound  up  together, 
each  complementary,  the  one  to  the  other,  and  each 
necessary  for  the  adequate  presentation  of  the  religion 
of  Jesus  Christ.  Therefore  how  great  is  the  loss 
when  a strange  gulf  is  allowed  to  develop  between 
the  teaching  and  the  practice  of  Christianity,  and  how 
invaluable  the  service  that  can  be  rendered  by  Medical 
Missions,  even  in  nominally  Christian  lands,  by  the 
bridge  that  they  erect  across  that  gulf. 

Accordingly,  when  we  pass  to  the  Church  on  the 
Mission  Field,  it  becomes  manifestly  clear  from  the 
foregoing  considerations  that  it  is  of  first  moment  to 
inculcate  a direct  share  in  philanthropic  work.  The 
young  native  Church  cannot  be  left  to  regard  such 
effort  as  something  outside  of  itself.  Essentially, 
and  all  the  more  because  of  the  widespread  necessity 
for  practically  every  form  of  philanthropy  in  mission 
lands,  must  the  native  Church  grip  the  idea  that  works 
of  benevolence  are  responsibilities  which  it  must 
directly  assume  and  discharge.  In  other  words,  that 
such  expressions  of  care  for  the  suffering  and  destitute 
are  indispensable  to  its  best  and  most  fruitful  life, 
and  that  only  by  engaging  in  these  ministries  can  it 
both  exhibit  that  object  lesson  of  its  faith  which  its 
heathen  neighbours  ought  to  see,  and  place  its  feet  in  the 
footprints  of  One  who  “ came  not  to  be  ministered  unto, 
but  to  minister.” 

Now,  in  this  work  of  educating  the  whole  native 
Church,  Medical  Missions  are  of  tremendous  value. 
Starting  with  the  exhibition  of  deeds  of  practical 
sympathy,  and  healing  kindness,  Medical  Missions  go 
on  to  inspire  the  organisation  of  similar  pieces  of  work 


110  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


by  the  native  Church.  As  a senior  Chinese  Missionary 
once  wrote,  “No  head  station  in  the  Mission  Field 
should  be  without  some  object  lesson  in  Christian 
philanthropy.”  At  first  the  spirit  of  true  altruism 
may  be  difficult  to  cultivate,  inasmuch  as  the  members 
of  the  Church  have  been  totally  unacquainted  with 
any  such  conception  in  their  heathen  ethics.  But 
assuredly  the  vital  necessity  of  leading  them,  in  their 
corporate  capacity,  to  assign  a place  for  the  various 
philanthropic  agencies  in  the  work  of  the  Church  is  a 
self-evident  duty,  in  the  discharge  of  wliich  Medical 
Missions  render  an  invaluable  service  to  the  whole 
missionary  enterprise. 

And  happily  there  are  not  wanting  indications  that  our 
brethren  in  the  native  Church  are  awakening  to  a sense 
of  the  obligations  of  Christian  stewardship  which  their 
faith  has  imposed  upon  them.  Take  the  splendid  efforts 
of  the  Christians  in  Manchuria  during  the  outbreak  of 
plague  in  1911.  Examples  of  the  bravest  and  most 
self-sacrificing  heroism  on  the  part  of  the  newly  trained 
Christian  medical  students  belonging  to  Pekin,  Mukden, 
etc.,  were  noteworthy  incidents  of  that  awful  time  of 
pestilence.  Take  yet  later  the  splendid  Red  Cross 
work  amongst  the  wounded,  carried  on  in  various  parts 
of  China  during  the  Revolution  of  1911-12.  How  truly 
did  the  spirit  of  the  Master  manifest  itself  in  numbers 
of  young  Christian  Chinese  who  went  into  the  teeth  of 
danger  and  endured  hardships  that  they  might  minister 
to  those  of  their  countrymen  in  suffering  and  distress. 
Yes,  the  native  Christian  Church  can  be  trained  in  the 
noblest  philanthropy,  if  we  will  but  set  before  them  the 
necessary  object  lessons,  and  it  is  at  once  the  glory  and 
responsibility  of  Medical  Missions  to  lead  the  van  in 
this  contribution  to  the  future  efficiency  of  the  Church 
on  the  Mission  field. 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  111 


IV.  The  Economic  Value  of  Medical  Missions. 

We  are  now  brought  to  consider  a part  of  our  subject, 
the  importance  of  which  has  already  been  alluded  to 
in  a previous  chapter.  Yet  there  is  hardly  any  aspect 
of  the  value  of  Medical  Missions  which  has  been  more 
overlooked  than  that  of  their  use  as  a missionary  health 
agency.  Unconsciously  it  may  be,  yet  none  the  less 
actually,  the  Home  Church  has  neglected  to  provide 
any  medical  aid  in  time  of  sickness  for  numbers  of  its 
missionaries.  There  has  been,  as  it  were,  a singular 
unbusinesslike  forgetfulness  of  the  immense  gain  that 
must  accrue  to  the  whole  enterprise  by  maintaining  at 
as  high  a level  as  possible  the  health  and  longevity  of 
its  human  agents.  Which  of  the  Finance  Committees 
of  the  various  societies  does  not  know  that  sickness  and 
death  on  the  Mission  Field  mean  a financial  loss  to  the 
work  ? And  who  can  contemplate  that,  in  these  days 
of  straightened  missionary  funds,  without  feeling  that  if 
by  the  utilisation  of  that  skill,  which  has  come  to  the 
world  as  one  of  God’s  good  gifts,  we  can  dimmish  the  risk 
of  health  and  life  on  the  field,  then  emphatically  it  is 
inexcusable  not  to  avail  ourselves  of  the  aid  of  that 
knowledge.  An  appreciation  of  the  value  of  such  help 
does  not  involve  any  lack  of  faith  in  God.  There  is 
the  same  cause  and  scope  for  the  exercise  of  faith  as  if 
no  means  were  used.  But  if  the  “ Divine  Economist  ” 
has  placed  within  our  reach  the  exact  supply  for  a 
specific  need,  then  it  is  only  right  to  assume  that  He 
means  us  to  use  it,  looking  to  Him  for  the  blessing. 

There  are  three  separate  ways  in  which  Medical 
Missions  prove  their  value  in  this  connection  : — 

1.  By  diffusing  a proper  knowledge  of  the  preservation 
of  health  amongst  the  missionary  staff. — This  is  one  of 
the  most  necessary  provisions  in  the  maintenance  of  a 


112  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


good  standard  of  health.  How  often  has  it  been  seen 
that  the  occurrence  of  illness  in  the  members  of  a 
mission  has  been  due  to  ignorance  concerning  tropical 
hygiene,  more  than  to  anything  else.  Simple  measures 
have  been  omitted,  unwise  actions  have  been  com- 
mitted, all  because  the  requisite  knowledge  was  not 
forthcoming.  To  cite  examples — Sun  helmets  have  not 
been  worn  as  scrupulously  as  they  should  have  been. 
Quinine  has  not  been  taken  with  sufficient  regularity  as 
a prophylactic.  Sufficient  time  has  not  been  given  to 
rest  and  exercise,  and  unsuitable  food  has  been  eaten. 
The  imperative  necessity  of  ensuring  the  most  perfect 
boiling  of  drinking  fluids  has  been  treated  lightly.  All 
these  and  many  other  instances  of  grave  indiscretion 
have  arisen  time  and  again  through  an  absence  of  the 
needful  authoritative  advice. 

Now  much  may  be  done,  and  is  being  accomplished 
by  the  circulation  of  printed  matter  giving  the  needed 
“ hints,”  and  by  the  organising  of  courses  of  lectures 
upon  “ Health  in  the  Tropics,”  for  outgoing  missionaries. 
But  beyond  all  that,  and  as  a necessary  complement, 
there  is  ample  scope  for  the  skilled  guidance  of  medical 
missionaries  on  the  field.  They  pre-eminently  are 
those  who  can  keep  an  eye  upon  the  habits  of  life  of 
their  comrades  in  the  work,  and  by  wise  insistence 
upon  the  importance  of  this  or  that  ensure  the  avoidance 
of  wrong  actions  and  the  adoption  of  right  ones.  Their 
advice  will  be  listened  to  because  they  speak  from  the 
platform  of  ascertained  knowledge,  and  their  con- 
tribution in  this  way  to  the  maintenance  of  good  health 
amongst  their  colleagues  is  one  which  is  calculated  to 
be  of  signal  value. 

2.  By  treating  sick  members  of  the  staff. — The  not 
infrequent  manner  in  which  missionaries  are  exposed 
to  serious  risk  of  illness,  and  the  sad  way  in  which 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  113 


sickness  and  death  again  and  again  invade  missionary 
homes,  continue  to  afford  a sufficient  reminder  of  the 
immense  need  for  fully  qualified  doctors  on  the  staff. 
It  will  appeal  to  all  that  both  the  royal  law  of  love, 
and  the  soundest  principles  of  missionary  economics 
oblige  us  to  remember  these  our  brethren  and  sisters 
in  their  times  of  physical  peril.  For,  surely,  if  they 
have  gone  forth  at  the  call  of  our  common  Lord  to  do 
a work,  that  it  is  to  be  feared,  many  another  of  us  ought 
to  have  gone  to  do,  then  the  least  service  we  can  render 
is  to  provide  them,  out  of  the  fulness  of  brotherly 
love,  with  such  a sufficiency  of  medical  skill  as  shall 
lessen  their  risk  and  ease  their  anxiety  in  the  hours 
when  the  lamp  of  life  bums  low. 

Let  us  pass  from  the  abstract  to  the  concrete,  and 
cite  an  instance  from  the  record  of  current  missionary 
history  to  support  this  point : — Two  lady  missionaries 
were  designated  for  a station  in  Tropical  Africa,  and 
the  one  reached  it  some  months  in  advance  of  the  other. 
Within  two  months  she  was  stricken  with  serious  fever, 
and  no  medical  missionary  was  at  hand.  All  that 
devotion  could  do  on  the  part  of  her  fellow  missionaries 
was  done,  but  alas  ! the  fever  could  not  be  controlled, 
and  a fatal  result  ensued.  The  second  lady  missionary 
went  out  later,  and  was  shortly  followed  by  the  arrival 
at  the  station  of  a medical  missionary.  A month 
passed  and  she  too  was  laid  low  with  a fever,  precisely 
similar  to  the  one  from  which  the  former  lady  had  died. 
For  days  her  life  lay  in  the  balance  and  taxed  to  the 
utmost  every  medical  resource.  But  finally  the  fever 
yielded  and  her  life  was  spared.  In  comparing  these 
two  cases,  is  it  not  permissible  to  form  the  deduction 
that  the  difference  in  their  respective  issues  was  ac- 
counted for,  under  God,  by  the  presence  of  the  doctor 

H 


114  VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

on  the  second  occasion  ? And  if  that  is  so,  then  who 
will  deny  the  value  of  the  service  that  Medical  Missions 
can  render  in  caring  for  sick  missionaries  ? 

3.  By  guiding  the  Health  Administration  of  Missionary 
Societies. — One  of  the  most  noticeable  features  in  the 
conduct  of  missionary  societies  of  late  years  has  been 
the  increased  disposition  that  has  been  manifested  to 
pay  greater  attention  to  the  vital  statistics  of  those  sent 
out  to  the  field.  Candidates  offering  to  the  work  have 
been  physically  examined  with  more  searching  rigour. 
Missionaries  returning  from  and  going  abroad  have 
been  medically  “ overhauled,”  and  their  work  regulated 
by  the  lessons  thus  derived.  Health  reports  have  been 
obtained  and  considered  with  greater  system.  Medical 
departments  have  been  established  in  connection  with 
many  of  the  bigger  societies,  and  medical  officers  ap- 
pointed to  devote  time  and  thought  to  the  health  of 
the  members  of  the  Mission.  For  all  this  we  cannot 
be  too  thankful.  It  indicates  a growth  of  wholesome 
sanity  in  the  carrying  on  of  the  greatest  enterprise 
committed  by  Christ  to  His  Church.  But  if  the  work 
thus  done  is  to  be  of  the  value  that  it  might  and  can 
prove  to  be,  then  it  is  of  first  importance  that  there 
should  be  brought  into  the  counsels  that  expert  guidance 
which  medical  missionaries  from  the  field  can  afford. 
They  of  all  people  are  those  who  are  possessed  with 
that  technical  local  knowledge  which  is  essential  time 
after  time  to  the  framing  of  wise  dicisions  concerning 
the  locations  of  workers,  the  hygiene  of  mission  stations 
and  many  kindred  problems.  How  valuable  such  help 
may  be,  perhaps  only  those  whose  duty  it  is  to  engage 
in  the  home  administration  can  adequately  appreciate, 
but  it  is  safe  to  say  that  it  is  assistance  which  has 
rendered,  and  is  calculated  to  render  yet  more,  the 
fullest  and  most  important  service. 


VALUE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  115 


In  these  three  different  ways  then  do  we  see  how 
great  is  the  value  of  Medical  Missions,  as  an  economic 
force  in  the  work  of  Christian  Missions.  The  only 
wonder  is  that  there  did  not  arise  an  earlier  recognition 
of  the  fact.  Strange  does  it  seem  that  for  so  long 
the  health  side  of  missionary  propaganda  remained 
an  unexplored  realm.  Now  that  the  days  of  empiricism 
have  passed  and  the  day  of  law  has  dawned  it  is  to  be 
earnestly  hoped  that  the  value  of  Medical  Missions 
as  a powerful  health  agency  in  the  life  of  a mission 
will  be  appraised  and  utilised  at  its  fullest  worth. 

We  have  now  finished  our  resume  of  the  main  directions 
in  which  Medical  Missions  reveal  their  value  in  the 
missionary  enterprise.  We  have  seen  how  potent 
is  their  influence  in  the  work  of  direct  evangelisation  ; 
how  useful  is  their  stimulus  as  a Christian  social 
agent  in  the  body  politic  of  heathen  lands  ; how  unique 
is  their  sphere  and  opportunity  in  the  task  of  Christian 
medical  education  ; and  how  important  their  service 
in  maintaining  the  health  standard  of  a mission.  From 
every  side  there  has  come  an  accumulating  weight  of 
evidence  all  testifying  to  the  wealth  of  that  potentiality 
with  which  Medical  Missions  are  endowed.  Can  there 
be  any  doubt,  therefore,  as  to  their  employment  ? 
Can  it  be  questioned  for  a single  moment,  that  in 
this  aspect  of  missionary  activity  we  have  a divinely 
ordained  instrument  for  the  spread  of  the  Kingdom  of 
Jesus  Christ  in  every  land  ? Surely  we  may  with  the 
utmost  confidence  proclaim  with  ardour  the  striking 
value  of  this  glorious  agency,  use  every  means  within 
our  reach  to  promote  its  furtherance  throughout  the 
world,  and  pray  unceasingly  that  wherever  medical 
missionaries  are  labouring  the  name  of  Our  Lord  may 
be  magnified  in  healing  and  saving  power. 


CHAPTER  VII 


THE  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ The  physician’s  soothing,  healing  touch  is  the  broad  scythe 
which  sweeps  a harvest  to  his  feet.  . . . Hospitals  become  schools, 
where  heavenly  lessons  seem  more  easily  learned  than  elsewhere.” — 
A.  B.C.F.M. 

We  come  now  to  a review  of  the  actual  ways  in  which 
Medical  Missions  seek  to  accomplish  the  various  ends 
for  which  they  have  been  called  into  being,  and  in  which 
they  have  proved  their  unique  value  in  the  spread  of 
the  Gospel.  Hardly  can  there  be  anything  of  greater 
importance  in  the  whole  of  our  subject.  For  if,  as  has 
already  been  seen,  the  work  of  Medical  Missions  is  so 
urgently  and  incontrovertibly  necessary  in  the  missionary 
enterprise,  then  it  is  of  first  moment  that  there  should 
be  a clear  understanding  of  the  modus  operandi  adopted 
by  those  engaged  in  the  work  on  the  field. 

It  is  now  well  on  towards  a century  since  the  first 
modern  medical  missionary  began  his  work,  and  since 
then  the  attention  directed  to  this  aspect  of  missions 
has  been  increasingly  growing  in  importance.  We  may 
therefore  safely  assume  that  sufficient  experience  has 
been  gained  to  allow  of  certain  definite  lines  being 
indicated  as  those  along  which  the  practice  of  Medical 
Missions  may  proceed  most  usefully,  most  economically, 
and  with  the  best  result.  Manifestly  we  cannot  rightly 
and  adequately  appreciate  the  problems  of  medical 
missionaries,  nor  prayerfully  enter  into  their  difficulties 
116 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  117 


unless  there  is  obtained  a comprehensive  idea  of  the 
different  aspects  of  their  engrossing  work.  To  a con- 
sideration of  these  we  now  invite  the  attention  of  our 
readers. 

There  are  five  main  departments  of  the  practice  of 
Medical  Missionaries,  and  these  are : (1)  Dispensary 
work ; (2)  Visits  to  homes ; (3)  Itinerating  work ; 

(4)  Hospital  Work ; (5)  Branch  Dispensaries.  Each  of 
these  requires  for  its  best  and  fullest  development  the 
work  of  the  others,  but  at  the  same  time  any  one  of 
the  first  three  methods  can  be  carried  on  apart  from  the 
rest.  Inasmuch,  however,  as  this  latter  course  is  remote 
from  the  ideal,  and  a plan  that  should  be  discouraged, 
we  only  mention  it  here  in  passing.  What  we  propose 
to  do  is  to  sketch  what  may  be  described  as  the  natural 
evolution  of  a fully  equipped  Medical  Mission,  taking  each 
department  in  the  sequence  in  which  it  usually  appears. 

1.  Dispensary  Work. — This  branch  of  Medical  Missions 
may  be  compared  to  the  out-patient  practice  of  a 
hospital  in  this  country,  so  far  as  the  medical  work  is 
concerned.  It  is  almost  invariably  commenced  in 
some  needy  mission  station,  by  one  of  the  non-medical 
missionaries,  who  has  been  appealed  to  for  medical 
help,  obtaining  a few  simple  drugs,  which  he  has  learned 
to  use,  and  treating  patients,  perhaps  in  a room  of  his 
own  house.  Gradually  the  work  grows,  patients  come 
in  larger  numbers  and  present  cases,  which  in  the  scope 
and  severity  of  their  ailments  are  beyond  the  skill  of 
untrained  help.  The  need  for  sending  a doctor  to  the 
station  is  then  considered,  and  if  it  seems  that  the 
place  possesses  the  necessary  suitability  for  a medical 
mission,  and  the  medical  missionary  is  forthcoming, 
he  is  attached  to  the  staff  and  takes  over  charge  of  the 
dispensary. 


118  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


By  this  time  perhaps  a special  building  has  been 
obtained  or  assigned  for  its  use  ; if  not,  the  doctor 
quickly  finds  it  necessary  to  secure  and  adapt  such  a 
one.  A stock  of  the  medicines  in  common  use  and  a 
few  minor  surgical  instruments  is  furnished  to  the 
doctor,  who  sets  apart  definite  hours  each  day  for  seeing 
patients.  On  these  days  the  work  commences  with 
an  evangelistic  service  led  by  the  medical  missionary, 
this  usually  consisting  in  prayer  and  a Gospel  address. 
If  there  is  no  special  waiting  room  in  which  this  can 
take  place,  it  is  often  conducted  on  the  verandah  of 
the  dispensary  building  or  in  some  adjoining  courtyard. 

The  service  being  over,  the  doctor  goes  into  his  consult- 
ing room,  and  there,  one  by  one,  interviews  his  patients. 
Whilst  he  is  doing  so,  those  remaining  outside  are  having 
the  Gospel  explained  to  them,  by  another  missionary 
or  by  native  evangelists,  who  sell  and  distribute  Gospel 
literature  amongst  the  patients  and  their  friends.  The 
patients,  having  been  seen  by  the  medical  missionary, 
either  have  given  to  them  prescriptions  to  take  into 
the  dispensing  room,  where  a trained  native  assistant 
makes  them  up,  or  are  sent  into  an  adjoining  surgery, 
or  out  on  to  a verandah  for  the  purpose  of  having  ulcers 
dressed,  abscesses  lanced,  and  other  minor  surgical  work 
performed.  This  goes  on  until  all  the  patients  have  been 
attended  to,  and  the  work  often  runs  into  several  hours. 
Many  of  the  cases  are  routine  and  trivial,  but  many, 
alas,  are  severe  and  beyond  all  hope  of  dispensary 
treatment.  An  idea  of  the  kind  of  practice  may  be 
gathered  from  the  following  account  of  a series  of 
dispensary  patients  attending  a dispensary  in  Inland 
China. 

“ Who  is  this  that  comes  in  first  ? He  is  a small 
market  gardener  who  has  sold  his  vegetables  and  has 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  119 


now  come  to  have  his  eyes  looked  at.  We  look  at  them. 
Very  red  and  inflamed  they  are,  and  as  we  look  closely, 
we  see  that  there  is  what  looks  like  a piece  of  flesh  growing 
from  each  corner  of  his  eye  towards  the  pupil.  This  is 
a most  common  disease  in  China,  and  thousands  suffer 
from  it.  Often  these  fleshy  masses  grow  right  across 
the  pupil  and  completely  obscure  vision.  We  explain 
to  him  the  remedy — removal ; but  of  this  he  is  rather 
afraid,  so  a little  ointment  is  given  him  to  use,  and  we 
ask  him  to  come  on  some  other  day,  when  we  shall 
have  similar  operations,  and  which  he  can  then  see 
are  done  quite  painlessly ; moreover,  we  tell  him  that 
there  are  amongst  the  patients  some  who  have  been 
operated  on  and  from  whom  he  can  learn  the  result. 
So  his  courage  rises,  and  he  is  operated  on,  getting 
great  benefit,  and  as  a consequence,  sending  many 
another  patient  up  to  the  dispensary,  and  many  of  these 
are  accompanied  by  friends,  and  as  all  who  come 
hear  of  Christ  and  His  love  for  them,  the  number  of 
those  thus  reached  by  the  Gospel  is  much  larger  than 
the  number  of  actual  patients. 

“ Now  another  patient  comes  in  and  we  begin  by 
asking  him  his  name. 

“ ‘ What  is  your  honourable  name  ? ’ 

“ ‘ My  unworthy  name  is  Wang.’ 

“ ‘ What  is  your  exalted  age  ? ’ 

“ ‘ I am  unworthy.  I have  wasted  fifty-two  years.’ 

“ ‘ Where  do  you  come  from  ? ’ 

“ ‘ Your  little  brother  comes  from  Wang  family  village,’ 
and  so  on,  in  similar  language.  ‘ What  is  his  precious 
ailment  ? ’ until  we  find  that  he  has  been  suffering 
from  very  bad  dyspepsia,  which  he  dates  from  a certain 
day,  many  years  ago,  when  he  ate  a bowlful  of  cold 
rice,  and  it  upset  him  ! Another  cause  which  he  may 


120  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


assign  is  the  fact  that  this  child  committed  some  fault, 
and  he  was  angry  with  him  ‘ just  after  taking  a meal,’ 
and  he  has  had  pain  ‘ at  the  mouth  of  his  heart  ever 
since  ’ ! We  give  him  medicine,  and  advice  regarding  his 
food,  also  regarding  his  temper,  too,  for  could  you  see  a 
Chinaman  ‘ eating  wrath,’  as  he  calls  it,  you  could  well 
understand  that  he  might  have  indigestion  for  the  rest 
of  his  life,  no  matter  how  long  since  his  last  meal ! 

“ Now,  whom  have  we  here  ? 

“ A man  comes  in  carrying  an  old  woman  on  his  back. 
We  soon  find  that  she  is  his  mother.  Indeed,  if  we 
have  been  in  the  country  for  a while,  we  should  know 
that  at  first  glance. 

“ What  is  the  matter  ? 

“ We  can  tell  almost  at  once,  for  the  poor  old  lady’s 
breathing  is  most  distressing.  She  has  asthma  badly. 
We  cannot  cure  her.  She  has  had  it  more  years  than 
we  are  old.  She  wishes  she  were  dead,  she  says.  We 
try  to  cheer  her,  telling  her  of  a home  where  there  is  no 
sickness  and  no  sorrow,  no  squalor,  no  choking  smoke 
permeating  every  inch  of  breathing  space,  where  all  is 
peace  and  rest  and  joy.  She  shakes  her  poor  old  head 
sorrowfully,  and  sadly  says,  ‘ Woa  pu  tung  tei  ’ (I 
don’t  understand).  Poor  soul  ! she  does  not,  indeed. 
She  has  not  known  what  it  is  to  look  forward  to  a bright 
and  glorious  home,  and  an  eternal  rest.  We  give  her 
something  to  relieve  her,  and  with  many  thanks  from 
mother  and  son  she  passes  out.  But  what  a regret 
lingers  in  our  heart  that  she  did  not  hear  the  Gospel 
when  she  was  younger,  and  might  have  understood  ! 
And  so  we  go  on.  Twenty,  forty,  sixty,  or  more  cases, 
just  such  as  this,  and  a few  more  acute  diseases,  together 
with  some  more  interesting  cases  amongst  them,  such  as 
tumours  which  need  removing,  abscesses  which  must  be 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  121 

opened,  teeth  to  be  extracted,  a fractured  limb  to  be 
set,  etc.  It  does  not  sound  very  romantic,  does  it  ? 
No  ! a missionary’s  life  is  not  always  romantic.  There 
is  much  of  the  humdrum  in  it ; but  there  is  the  blessed 
joy  of  knowing  we  are  where  He  would  have  us  to  be, 
and  doing  what  He  would  have  us  do,  and  that  is  all 
the  reward  we  look  for.” 

The  great  and  splendid  work  thus  accomplished  by 
mission  dispensaries  will  appeal  to  all,  but  it  will  be 
easy  to  see  that  from  the  point  of  view  of  the  medical 
side  the  work  has  serious  limitations.  Large  numbers 
may  be  treated,  but  unless  there  is  a hospital  in  addition 
to  the  dispensary,  many,  very  many,  of  these  cannot  be 
cured,  or  in  any  sense  adequately  relieved.  The  work 
is  extensive,  but  if  it  stands  by  itself  alone  it  lacks 
the  quality  of  intensiveness.  Moreover,  medicine  that  is 
given  to  dispensary  patients  is  often  taken  irregularly, 
or  not  at  all,  until  the  approval  of  the  “ gods  ” is 
obtained.  Explicit  directions  as  to  dose  and  frequency 
are  forgotten,  or  hopelessly  muddled,  so  much  so  that 
patients  who  have  been  given  powders  to  take  have 
been  known  to  swallow  the  paper  wrapper  and  throw 
away  the  powder  ! Surgical  dressings  carefully  applied 
have  been  removed  “ to  see  how  the  treatment  was 
getting  on  ” and  the  case  spoiled.  These  and  many 
other  grievous  drawbacks  attach  to  the  medical  work  of 
a dispensary,  and  occasion  very  frequently  not  a little 
disappointment. 

Then,  too,  on  the  evangelistic  side,  whilst  a wide 
bearing  may  be  gained  for  the  Gospel,  and  a most 
valuable  service  rendered  in  the  removal  of  prejudice, 
and  the  creation  of  a favourable  feeling,  yet  the  great 
difficulty  is  that  there  is  no  time  for  more  than  a passing 
impression  to  be  made,  and  the  patients  may  only  come 


122  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


a few  times.  It  is  perfectly  true  that  much  evangelistic 
success  can  be  and  is  attained,  but  there  is  the  constant 
want  of  something  additional  in  the  shape  of  longer 
and  fuller  opportunities  for  “ following  up  ” the  im- 
pressions created.  Therein  comes  the  great  utility  and 
supreme  advantage  of  a hospital,  whereby  the  initial 
successes  of  the  dispensary  can  be  conserved,  and  made 
to  yield  the  richest  fruit.  Hence  does  it  come  about 
that  from  both  the  medical  and  evangelistic  sides 
there  quickly  arises  a plea  for  the  addition  of  a hospital 
concerning  whose  work  we  shall  see  later. 

2.  Visits  to  Homes. — This  section  of  the  work  of  a 
Medical  Mission,  as  will  be  readily  realised,  follows 
most  naturally  upon  the  work  of  the  dispensary.  Once 
the  doctor  has  started  his  mdeical  work,  and  is  seeing 
patients,  there  come  to  him  requests  that  he  would 
visit  some  who  are  too  sick  to  leave  their  homes.  Or 
it  may  be  that  patients  who  have  been  seen  in  the 
dispensary  become  too  ill  to  attend  again,  and  their 
only  hope  lies  in  the  doctor  going  to  them.  More 
especially  does  this  branch  of  medical  work  fall  to  the  lot 
of  the  lady  doctor,  though  in  many  lands  the  male 
medical  missionary  is  appealed  to  for  help  of  this 
nature.  And  it  is  work  which  carries  with  it  many 
opportunities. 

Think  for  a moment  of  the  openings  that  visits  to 
homes  afford  for  giving  new  ideas  concerning  the  care 
of  the  sick,  and  habits  of  cleanliness  and  hygiene  in 
general.  The  Medical  Missionary  can  assume  the  role 
of  health  instructor  and  sanitary  reformer.  It  is  true, 
alas,  that  the  efforts  put  forth  in  this  direction  are  apt 
to  be  rendered  null  and  void  by  the  superstition  of  the 
people  and  their  appalling  ignorance,  yet,  nevertheless, 
slowly  but  surely,  the  influences  thus  exerted  by  medical 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  123 


missionaries  are  destined  to  accomplish  very  important 
results. 

Then  there  is  the  opportunity  that  visits  to  homes 
present  for  carrying  the  Gospel  to  the  inmates,  many  of 
whom  would  otherwise  never  hear  it.  Often  in  this 
way  whole  households  are  brought  within  the  sound 
of  the  message,  and  visiting  the  bedside  of  one  sick 
person  may  open  the  door  for  telling  an  entire  family 
about  our  Lord.  Furthermore  this  branch  of  work 
again  and  again  proves  to  be  the  introduction  to  people 
of  influence  and  position,  and  the  means,  by  so  doing, 
of  gaining  goodwill  and  support  for  the  Mission.  Time 
may  be  hard  to  find  for  the  visits,  but  experience  has 
shown  that  the  value  of  this  aspect  of  Medical  Mission 
practice  is  both  far-reaching  and  fruitful. 

3.  Itinerating  Work. — By  this  is  meant  a tour  amongst 
a series  of  villages  or  towns  lying  at  a distance  from  the 
Mission  dispensary,  and  here  again,  as  in  the  case  of 
visits  to  homes,  such  work  follows  in  natural  sequence 
to  the  establishment  of  a medical  centre.  Many  of 
the  patients  who  have  come  to  the  dispensary  represent 
places  situated  at  a distance,  and  their  coming  and 
return  home  will  have  suggested  to  the  doctor  the 
necessity  and  importance  of  devoting  some  time  for 
touring  in  the  district,  not  only  for  the  sake  of  following 
up  his  old  patients,  but  in  order  that  something  may 
be  done,  even  in  a small  way,  for  the  large  number 
of  sufferers  who  are  yet  untreated. 

Previous  to  the  tour  being  undertaken,  news  is  often 
conveyed  to  the  places  which  it  is  intended  to  visit, 
so  that  patients  may  gather  in  time  to  be  seen  by  the 
medical  missionary.  The  time  spent  in  each  place 
varies — sometimes  it  is  only  a day  or  two,  at  others  a 
week  or  more,  and  it  is  the  longer  periods  which  most 


124  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


abound  in  result.  The  kind  of  medical  work  under- 
taken consists  in  simple  operations,  the  administration 
of  remedies  for  minor  ailments,  and  the  attraction 
of  severer  cases  to  the  central  hospital.  From  an 
evangelistic  standpoint  this  work  is  distinctly  en- 
couraging, and  has  proved  of  marked  value  as  an 
agency  for  spreading  the  Gospel.  The  patients  and 
their  friends  will  often  gather  round  the  missionary 
at  the  close  of  the  day  and,  having  experienced  the 
blessing  of  his  skill,  willingly  listen  to  the  words  he  has 
to  say.  Moreover,  it  is  customary  before  commencing 
the  actual  medical  work  to  spend  a short  time  in  ex- 
plaining the  Gospel  message,  so  that  all  may  have  an 
opportunity  of  hearing  the  Truth. 

As  an  actual  description  of  this  branch  of  work,  let 
us  quote  the  following  account  of  a tour  undertaken 
by  a Medical  Missionary  in  North  India  (Dr  Vincent 
Thomas,  of  Palwal) : — 

“ It  was  November,  the  best  month  of  the  year  in 
North-West  India  for  the  work  of  itinerant  preaching 
and  healing.  We  had  pitched  our  camp  in  a grove  of 
mango  trees,  about  twenty  miles  from  headquarters, 
and  just  outside  a large  village.  It  was  intended  to 
make  this  the  centre  for  two  or  three  weeks,  as  there 
were  numbers  of  villages,  large  and  small,  within  easy 
reach,  and  it  was  the  definite  aim  to  preach  in  each 
one  before  moving  on  to  the  next  camping  place. 

The  same  day  that  we  put  up  our  tents,  we  were 
fortunate  in  securing  a small  shop  just  aside  from  the 
main  bazaar  of  the  village,  which  we  fitted  up  as  a 
temporary  dispensary.  This  done,  we  took  up  a 
prominent  position  in  the  bazaar,  started  a Hindi 
hymn,  which  brought  us  the  desired  crowd,  and  then 
gave  a short  Gospel  address.  Notice  was  given  to 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  125 


all  whom  it  may  specially  concern,  that  at  nine  o’clock 
on  the  following  morning  we  should  open  our  dispensary. 

“ At  the  appointed  time  we  found  a small  crowd  of 
about  thirty  waiting.  We  expressed  our  pleasure  at 
having  been  permitted  by  God  to  come  there  to  help 
them  in  their  need,  telling  them  that  we  did  so  because 
we  believed  that  God  had  sent  us  to  do  what  we  could 
for  them  in  their  need,  and  because  our  religion  taught 
sympathy  with  the  poor  and  sick.  We  told  them  of 
God’s  Fatherly  compassion  on  all  the  children  of  men 
who  sin  and  suffer ; of  the  power  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  to  heal  and  to  save  ; and  of  that  holiness,  the 
health  of  the  soul,  which  He  alone  can  impart  to  those 
who  seek  and  find  Him.  Then  in  a short  prayer  we 
asked  that  our  word  and  work  be  blessed,  that  the  sick 
may  be  healed,  and  the  eyes  of  the  blind  opened  to  see 
the  beauty  and  truth  of  the  One  Saviour  of  men.  The 
crowd  having  increased,  it  became  necessary  to  separate 
the  patients  from  the  mere  onlookers,  and  to  then 
arrange  the  former  in  order,  names  and  addresses  being 
first  of  all  carefully  registered,  so  that  in  days  to  come 
we  might  keep  trace  of,  and  in  touch  with  the  patients. 
After  this  began  the  work  of  diagnosing  and  prescrib- 
ing, dispensing  of  medicine,  and  dressing  of  ulcers,  with 
a slight  operation  now  and  then,  such  as  the  lancing 
of  an  abscess,  or  the  drawing  of  a tooth.  At  such  times 
all  is  done  in  full  view  of  the  crowd.  This  has  its  dis- 
advantages, but  in  a pioneer  work  of  this  kind  there 
is  no  better  way  to  win  the  confidence  of  the  people. 
It  teaches  them  the  reasonableness  and  common  sense, 
the  honesty  and  soundness,  of  our  methods.  Moreover 
(and  this  is  a new  thing  to  most  of  them),  they  see  that 
with  the  doctor  there  is  no  ‘ respect  of  persons.’  He 
does  not  allow  difference  of  rank  and  caste  to  influence 


126  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


his  treatment.  He  tends  the  low-caste  sweeper’s 
child  with  as  much  sympathy  and  care  as  he  gives  to 
the  eldest  son  of  the  high-caste  Government  official. 
Also  they  learn  the  great  value  we  attach  to  cleanliness. 
As  one  dresses  these  foul  ulcers,  or  lances  an  abscess, 
the  process  is  accompanied  by  a running  commentary 
on  each  of  its  steps.  It  is  a clinical  lecture  on  cleanliness 
as  the  indispensable  condition  of  healing  and  of  health. 
From  this  what  could  be  more  natural  or  more  im- 
pressive than  to  draw  their  attention  on  from  bodily 
to  spiritual  cleanliness,  pointing  out  what  salvation 
is  to  the  clean  of  heart  ? Thus  do  we  seek  to  make 
plain  to  them  both  their  need  and  the  divine  method 
of  salvation,  so  that  by  the  time  the  last  of  the  ulcers 
has  been  disposed  of,  it  is  not  the  fault  of  the  “ dresser  ” 
if  patients  and  by-standers  have  not  had  a clear  exposi- 
tion of  the  essence  of  the  Christian  Gospel. 

“ It  was  well  past  midnight  when  the  last  patient 
‘ salaamed  ’ and  turned  homewards,  after  which  we 
first  prepared  the  place  for  the  next  day,  leaving  stock 
medicines,  lotions,  ointments,  and  dressings  ready  for 
use,  and  then  returned  to  our  camp  in  the  shady  mango 
grove. 

“ And  so  the  work  went  on,  day  by  day,  wonderfully 
interesting,  often  pathetic,  always  a delight.  Frequent 
opportunities  of  doing  evangelistic  work,  either  along- 
side of,  or  as  a sequel  to,  the  medical  work,  showed 
us  more  than  ever  the  value  of  the  latter  as  an  auxiliary 
and  a ‘ path-finder  ’ for  the  former.  The  allotted 
period  of  our  stay  in  that  centre  all  too  soon  drew  to 
an  end.  There  was  much  ground  to  be  covered  on  this 
tour,  and  it  was  even  as  in  the  days  of  the  Master. 
‘ They  say  unto  Him,  all  men  are  seeking  Thee.  And 
He  said  unto  them,  Let  us  go  elsewhere,  unto  the  next 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  127 

towns,  that  I may  preach  there  also  ; for  to  this  end 
came  I forth.’  ” 

The  value  of  this  form  of  medical  missionary  activity 
may  be  said,  broadly  speaking,  to  depend  on  the  stage 
to  which  the  work  has  advanced.  At  first  it  may  be 
one  of  the  doctor’s  main  branches  of  work,  and  serves  a 
most  important  function  in  winning  the  confidence 
of  the  people,  and  enhancing  the  success  of  the  central 
dispensary.  Later  on,  when  a hospital  is  erected 
medical  itineration  becomes  in  certain  districts  of  less 
imperative  necessity,  and  the  time  and  strength  given 
to  it  must  largely  depend  firstly  upon  the  presence  or 
absence  of  a medical  colleague,  who  can  take  charge 
of  the  work  at  headquarters,  and  secondly,  upon  the 
efficiency  of  native  helpers.  Its  intrinsic  success  as 
an  evangelistic  instrument  is  also  closely  connected 
with  the  presence  of  native  assistants  to  follow  up  the 
work  and  continue  the  explanation  of  the  truth. 
Granted  that  such  necessary  help  is  available,  then 
there  can  be  no  doubt  that  medical  itineration  is  cal- 
culated to  prove  of  very  great  worth  as  an  evangelizing 
agency.  Indeed,  it  may  well  be  regarded  as  a section 
of  Medical  Mission  practice  which  has  a distinct  place 
to  fill  in  multiplying  the  successes  of  this  great  work, 
and  in  helping  to  realise  its  highest  aims. 

4.  Hospital  ivork. — The  late  Dr  Roberts,  of  Tientsin, 
wrote  on  one  occasion  : “ The  universal  opinion  of 
those  in  the  work  seems  to  be  that  the  value  and 
efficiency  of  their  work  is  in  direct  proportion  to  the 
presence  or  absence  of  a Hospital.”  And  such  may  be 
taken  to  be  the  practically  universal  testimony  from 
medical  missionaries  in  all  mission  fields.  We  there- 
fore come  now  to  a consideration  of  what  may  be  called 
the  very  cream  of  Medical  Mission  practice.  It  is  not 


128  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

that  any  one  of  the  other  branches  of  the  work  is  lacking 
in  intrinsic  value — all  have  their  place  and  power  as 
has  been  seen  already — but  there  are  potientalities 
in  mission  hospital  work  which  give  to  it  a particularly 
necessary  position  in  the  medical  missionary  enterprise. 
As  Dr  Van  Someron  Taylor,  of  China,  has  said : 
“ From  a medical  standpoint,  medical  work  without  a 
hospital  is  almost  useless  . . . the  hospital  is  the  base 
for  work,  as  well  as  the  workshop  of  the  medical 
missionary.” 

Let  us  think  for  a moment  or  two  of  the  medical  side 
of  the  mission  hospital.  How  does  it  most  frequently 
evolve  ? The  doctor,  let  it  be  supposed,  has  settled 
down  at  his  station,  established  his  dispensary  work, 
paid  visits  to  patients  in  their  homes,  and  gone  out  on 
one  or  two  itinerating  tours.  He  has  come  into  first 
hand  acquaintance  with  the  diseases  he  has  to  treat, 
and  the  kind  of  sufferers  he  has  to  relieve.  What,  then, 
is  the  necessity  that  almost  invariably  compels  his 
attention  ? It  is  the  need  for  a mission  hospital  into 
which  he  can  take  in  patients.  How  else  can  he  treat 
successfully  a good  proportion  of  the  people  who  claim 
his  aid  ? He  has  come  across  in  his  work  cases  of 
blindness  due  to  cataract,  and  only  in  a hospital  can 
those  cataracts  be  removed.  Patients  ill  with  pneu- 
monia, dropsy,  and  other  serious  medical  diseases 
have  come  into  his  consulting  room,  and  of  what  use 
is  it  for  them  to  have  medicine  given  to  them,  and  then 
be  treated  as  out-patients  ? The  doctor  knows  that 
there  is  but  one  real  means  of  doing  anything  effective 
for  these  patients,  and  that  is  to  get  them  under  close 
and  constant  observation  in  the  wards  of  a mission 
hospital. 

Or  again,  his  skill  has  been  sought  for  cases  requiring 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  129 


important  surgical  operations,  and  if  there  be  no  hospital, 
how  dare  he  attempt  such  measures  ? On  all  hands, 
consequently,  the  doctor  finds  the  call  for  a hospital, 
and  so  he  starts  this  line  of  work  by  making  room  in 
his  dispensary  building  for  one  or  two  beds,  or  gets 
a native  dwelling  and  adapts  it  for  this  purpose.  Soon 
this  becomes  too  small,  and  it  is  found  necessary  to 
erect  a properly  built  hospital,  which  is  the  next  stage 
in  the  equipment  of  the  Medical  Mission.  Here  the 
medical  missionary  can  undertake  the  successful  treat- 
ment of  that  numerous  class  of  cases  for  which  dis- 
pensary work,  etc.,  is  of  no  avail,  and  make  his  work 
in  every  sense  of  the  word  more  efficient,  and  more 
worthy  of  the  cause. 

It  has,  however,  to  be  stipulated  that  no  hospital 
can  do  what  should  be  expected  of  it  unless  there  is  an 
adequate  staff.  To  this  we  shall  refer  more  especially 
in  a later  chapter,  and  only  content  ourselves  here  by 
stating  that  as  a general  rule  every  hospital  should 
have  at  least  two  medical  missionaries  in  charge,  and 
be  equipped  with  a proper  stock  of  drugs  and  surgical 
apparatus. 

Coming  now  to  the  missionary  side  of  the  work,  it 
is  easy  to  realise  how  greatly  a hospital  contributes  to 
the  successful  prosecution  of  the  evangelistic  efforts  of 
the  Medical  Mission.  Many  patients  are  under  Christian 
influence  for  weeks  or  months,  and  during  that  time 
have  every  facility  for  seeing  and  knowing  what  a Christ 
like  life  should  be.  Frequent  ward  services  are  held  for 
the  patients,  and  as  far  as  he  can  the  doctor  gets  into 
touch  with  the  individuals.  His  work  in  this  direction 
is  followed  up  by  native  evangelists,  and  thus  hearts  are 
opened,  personal  difficulties  met,  and  time  is  given  for 
the  truth  to  make  a permanent  impression. 

i 


130  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Clearly  the  opportunities  of  a mission  hospital  for  a 
direct  furtherance  of  the  Gospel  are  many  and  great, 
and  of  a such  character  as  should  encourage  to  the  fullest 
extent  the  provision  of  many  more  such  additions  to 
the  work  of  Medical  Missions. 

In  order  that  an  adequate  appreciation  may  be  gained 
of  the  kind  of  spiritual  work  carried  on  in  a mission 
hospital,  we  quote  the  following  extracts  from  an  account 
of  the  evangelistic  work  of  one  hospital  in  North  China, 
written  by  Mrs  Broomhall  of  Tai  Yuan  Fu  : — 

“ Sunday  morning  dawns  in  Tai  Yuan  Fu  to  find  the 
Chinese  assistants  with  clean  shaven  heads,  and  clean 
blue  gowns  preparing  for  morning  prayers.  These 
prayers  are  held  each  morning — and  all  who  are  able 
of  the  staff  and  convalescent  patients  are  expected 
to  be  present — the  evangelists  and  students,  who  are 
Christian  men  and  boys,  leading  in  turn.  At  11,  when 
the  weekly  service  is  held  in  the  large  mission  church 
in  the  city,  two  of  the  students  are  left  in  charge  to 
receive  accidents,  which,  if  serious,  they  would  report 
to  the  doctor,  or  which  they  care  for  until  his  return, 
while  the  rest  of  the  staff  go  to  church. 

“ At  3.30  in  the  afternoon  is  a service  in  the  out- 
patients’ waiting-room  for  any  who  wish  to  attend  : 
evangelists,  students,  nurses,  gate-keepers,  coolies,  any 
patients  who  can  hobble  in,  and  most  joyfully  welcomed 
old  patients,  are  then  gathered  together,  when  a short 
service,  only  lasting  one  hour,  is  conducted  by  the 
doctor,  a visitor  missionary,  perhaps,  or  one  of  the 
students. 

“ When  the  sun  has  set  behind  the  western  hills, 
which,  like  the  hills  round  about  Jerusalem,  keep  guard 
over  the  city,  the  old  bell  rings  for  prayers — early  in 
the  winter,  but  in  the  cool  of  evening  after  the  hot 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  181 


summer  days.  This  is  the  best  time  of  all,  when,  like 
a family,  the  whole  of  the  hospital  inmates  gather, 
or  are  expected  to  do  so,  if  possible,  round  the  Word 
of  God,  one  week  in  the  eastern  ward  of  the  new  hospital 
block,  and  one  week  in  the  western,  so  that  men  confined 
to  their  beds  can,  at  least,  have  the  benefit  of  half  the 
services  each  fortnight.  The  work  is  carefully  mapped 
out,  so  that  the  doctor,  evangelist,  and  Christians, 
each  know  and  take  their  turn  in  leading  this  simple 
worship.  It  only  consists  of  the  singing  of  one  or  two 
hymns — reading  from  God’s  Word,  and  a short  address 
and  prayer,  yet  it  is  always  hoped  that  the  bread  cast 
upon  the  waters  will  return  in  due  time,  and  the  silent 
listeners  be  influenced  by  the  quiet  services.  Each 
Monday  night  a Bible  class  is  held  for  students  and 
Christians,  the  point  being  that,  by  unitedly  searching 
the  Scriptures  and  seeking  to  know  more  of  the  things 
of  God,  the  doctors  and  fellow-workers  may  be  drawn 
closer  together  in  their  sendee  for  Him,  and  keener 
in  their  desire  to  win  those  around  them  to  know  the 
only  true  God  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  He  has  sent. 

“ On  Tuesday  mornings,  as  on  Fridays,  service 
is  held  at  10  a.m.,  for  all  the  out-patients  who  have 
been  collecting  from  the  by-ways  of  the  city  and 
from  the  villages  around — a quaint  crowd  of  all  sorts 
and  conditions  of  men  who,  after  a short  prayer,  are 
told  very  simply  of  the  love  of  God  and  of  His  great 
gift  for  us.  To  many  this  is  a strange  proceeding — and 
it  is  often  not  until  a man  has  paid  several  visits  to 
the  hospital  that  he  grasps  the  meaning  of  this  hither- 
to unknown  service  to  the  invisible  God.  Doctors, 
students,  evangelists,  and  sometimes  friends,  lead 
this  service,  which  is  held  in  the  out-patient  waiting- 
room,  after  having  been  commended  to  God  in  prayer 


132  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


by  the  inner  circle  of  Christians  in  the  consulting- 
room. 

“ On  Wednesday  afternoon  is  the  service  which, 
though  perhaps  the  smallest,  is  the  one  which  needs 
more  patience,  more  grace,  more  hope,  and  more  prayer, 
in  him  who  leads,  than  any  other.  It  is  a gathering 
of  those  who  know  absolutely  nothing  of  Christianity 
or  the  Bible,  men  who  have  followed  the  plough,  hawked 
their  quaint  goods  on  the  street,  joined  the  rough  army, 
or  been  coolies  all  their  days,  and  who,  through  ill 
luck,  or  the  untimely  visitation  of  an  evil  spirit,  have 
foimd  themselves  sick,  and  have  been  persuaded  by 
report  or  their  friends  to  entrust  their  bodies  to  the 
unknown  foreigners.  Among  these  men  the  evangelist 
has  been  doing  his  quiet  work  all  through  the  week, 
teaching  the  most  elementary  truths  of  Christianity, 
reciting  a hymn,  or  dictating  a simple  prayer  to  the 
sick  men,  and  on  Wednesday  afternoon  the  doctor  goes 
through  a simple  form  of  questioning  to  prove  that  the 
evangelist  has  done  his  work  well,  and  that  the  patients 
are  gradually  taking  in  the  teachings.” 

The  foregoing  description  will  sufficiently  indicate 
the  splendid  utility  of  mission  hospitals  as  evangelistic 
agencies,  and  convey,  we  think,  to  all  our  readers  how 
magnificent  are  the  possibilities  attendant  upon  such  a 
work.  Can  any  one  question  the  importance  of  the 
contention  that  no  Medical  Mission  should  stop  short  of 
a fully  equipped  hospital  ? 

5.  Branch  Dispensaries. — The  establishment  of  a ring 
of  branch  dispensaries  is  the  natural  and  necessary 
complement  to  the  work  of  the  central  hospital  and 
dispensary.  It  is,  moreover,  in  an  almost  equal  way 
the  normal  outcome  of  the  itinerating  tours  conducted 
by  a medical  missionary.  The  importance  of  this 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  1.33 

addition  to  the  work  of  most  Medical  Missions  may- 
be gathered  from  the  following  Resolution  which  was 
brought  forward  by  Dr  W.  J.  Wanless,  on  behalf  of 
the  Indian  Medical  Missionary  Association,  at  the 
Medical  Missionary  Conference  held  in  Edinburgh 
1910  * 

“ That  branch  dispensaries  are  a valuable  extension 
of  hospital  work,  and  are  especially  so  in  districts  where 
Christians  are  scattered  amongst  the  villages.  Only 
trained  and  experienced  assistants  should  be  placed 
in  charge  of  branches,  the  connection  with  the  central 
hospital  should  be  close,  and  the  supervision  thorough.” 

There  are  two  reasons  which  make  the  establishment 
of  branch  dispensaries  a wise  and  valuable  development 
of  the  work  of  a hospital  centre.  In  the  first  place, 
such  branches  will  enable  the  needs  of  village  districts 
to  be  in  some  measure  met,  when  otherwise  the  people 
living  in  those  areas  must  be  left  to  depend  upon  the 
occasional  itinerating  visit  of  a medical  missionary. 
In  the  second  place,  branch  dispensaries  are  a most 
important  means  of  keeping  a central  hospital  in  touch 
with  a district  which  it  is  supposed  to  serve. 

It  does  not  need  much  explanation  to  show  that  there 
must  be  many  districts  which  present  conditions  of 
great  physical  need,  though  they  are  in  themselves  un- 
suitable for  the  erection  of  a fully  equipped  hospital.  It 
may  be  that  the  population  is  a scattered  one,  or  too 
far  removed  from  lines  of  communication,  and  too  much 
out  of  contact  with  popular  areas  to  render  the  estab- 
lishment of  a hospital  an  advisable  course.  Yet  at  the 
same  time,  there  may  exist  an  urgent  need  for  something 
in  the  way  of  medical  missionary  effort,  which  will 
bring  to  the  people  living  in  such  districts  the  blessing 
of  the  two-fold  healing  for  which  Medical  Missions 


134  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


stand.  Thus  arises  the  place  and  utility  of  branch 
dispensaries. 

Without  a lot  of  expensive  plant,  with  a minimum 
of  difficulty,  these  excellent  additions  to  the  work  of  a 
Medical  Mission  can  be  brought  into  being,  and  prove 
a veritable  Godsend  to  many  a needy  place.  A small 
building  can  either  be  rented  or  erected,  and  a supply 
of  the  commoner  medicines,  etc.  supplied  to  the  native 
medical  assistant  in  charge.  If  the  latter  be  sufficiently 
competent,  there  may  be  included  provision  for  a couple 
or  so  of  in-patients,  so  that  the  dispensary  may  attain 
to  the  utmost  degree  of  beneficial  service.  But  whether 
that  is  done  or  not,  it  will  be  invariably  found  that 
branch  dispensaries  can  make  a most  effectual  con- 
tribution to  the  healing  of  large  numbers  in  the  districts 
where  they  are  established.  Specially  to  the  Christians 
who  may  be  living  in  villages  around  a mission  centre 
these  dispensaries  are  calculated  to  be  of  very  great 
help. 

Then  there  is  this  further  value  of  branch  dispensaries, 
that  by  means  of  their  institution,  a central  hospital 
can  keep  in  intimate  touch  with  the  population  of  a 
considerable  area.  Patients  who  come  to  any  of  these 
dispensaries  are  at  once  brought  within  the  radius  of 
the  influence  of  the  Medical  Mission.  In  the  person 
of  the  trained  assistant  who  is  in  charge,  they 
see  a representative  of  the  medical  missionaries  who 
are  working  at  the  hospital.  Should  their  ailments 
require  more  in  the  way  of  treatment  than  the  branch 
dispensary  can  undertake,  they  can  be  induced  to  go 
to  the  hospital,  and  the  way  be  opened  up  for  them 
to  become  in-patients.  In  other  words  the  branch 
dispensaries  can  not  only  discharge  their  own  special 
service  to  the  people  of  their  immediate  districts,  but 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  135 


they  can  provide  what  is  frequently  a most  necessary 
and  invaluable  link  between  the  various  parts  of  a 
wide  village  area,  and  the  mission  hospital  at  the  centre. 

It  is  very  important,  however,  that  the  points  referred 
to  in  the  Resolution  quoted  above  should  be  consistently 
remembered.  Branch  dispensaries  should  only  be 
placed  under  the  charge  of  properly  trained  and  earnest 
Christian  medical  assistants,  and  they  should  be  visited 
at  regular  and  frequent  intervals  by  a medical  missionary 
from  the  central  hospital.  To  establish  a branch  dis- 
pensary, and  then  leave  it  to  an  assistant  who  is  in- 
efficient, or  upon  whose  earnestness  and  conscientious- 
ness sufficient  reliance  cannot  be  placed,  is  a course 
which  is  greatly  to  be  deprecated.  Branch  dispensaries, 
unless  efficiently  conducted  in  the  true  missionary 
spirit,  may  prove  a weakness,  rather  than  a strength. 
In  view,  however,  of  the  training  work  to  which  allusion 
has  already  been  made,  there  is,  we  venture  to  think, 
every  reason  to  believe  that  the  necessary  number  of 
native  assistants  possessing  consecrated  efficiency  for 
the  work  of  these  dispensaries  will  not  be  lacking  in 
coming  days.  Given  then,  that  frequent  visits  are 
paid  by  the  medical  missionary  who  exercises  super- 
vision, it  can  be  confidently  anticipated  that  branch 
dispensaries  will  prove  a most  serviceable  and  successful 
department  of  the  practice  of  Medical  Missions. 

We  must  now  bring  to  a close  this  hasty  sketch  of 
the  main  elements  that  enter  into  the  practice  of 
Medical  Missions.  Before  doing  so,  however,  it  is 
necessary  to  draw  attention  to  two  other  directions 
from  which  important  demands  are  made  upon  the  time 
and  strength  of  medical  missionaries.  We  refer  to  the 
work  of  training,  and  that  of  hospital  administration. 

In  regard  to  the  first  of  these,  it  will  be  readily 


136  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


recognised  how  indispensable  is  the  necessity  to  raise 
up  a staff  of  native  helpers  for  the  due  and  efficient 
discharge  of  all  the  duties  pertaining  to  a Medical 
Mission.  This  is  indeed  a vital  part  of  the  work  of 
every  medical  missionary.  We  do  not,  of  course,  refer 
in  this  connection  to  the  education  of  fully  qualified 
students — that  can  only  be  properly  undertaken  in 
specially  equipped  and  staffed  medical  colleges — but 
simply  to  the  training  of  ordinary  helpers  for  the  routine 
tasks  that  enter  into  the  day  by  day  practice  of  medical 
missionary  work.  For  instance,  there  are  the  dispensing 
of  medicines,  the  dressing  of  wounds,  the  performance 
of  ward  work,  the  preparation  of  patients  for  opera- 
tions, the  nursing  of  those  in  bed,  and  many  other 
essential  duties  which  must  be  provided  for,  and  which, 
at  the  same  time,  no  medical  missionary  can  ever  hope 
to  satisfactorily  accomplish,  unaided.  Obviously  it 
becomes  a manifest  necessity,  right  from  the  start, 
to  look  out  for  suitable  helpers  who  can  be  trained 
to  undertake  the  foregoing  pieces  of  work ; and  happy 
is  the  medical  missionary  who  is  successful  in  his  task 
of  selection.  At  first  this  department  of  his  work 
claims  a large  share  of  the  daily  round,  and  it  requires, 
all  through,  infinite  patience  and  grace.  Again  and  again 
it  may  bring  much  disappointment,  and  possibly  it 
may  seem  as  if  the  time  and  toil  expended  were  hardly 
worth  the  return.  Yet  in  the  end  it  is  rarely  found 
that  there  is  not  considerable  recompense  in  the 
diligent  and  devoted  help  of  a band  of  native  assistants. 
And  beyond  all  such  considerations  affecting  directly 
the  work  of  the  Medical  Mission,  there  is  the  joy  of 
knowing  that  something  more  has  been  accomplished  in 
diffusing  a knowledge  of  healing  amongst  the  people 
of  the  land. 


PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  137 


Then  in  regard  to  the  work  of  hospital  administration. 
This  is  a task  which  gives  to  the  medical  missionary  in 
charge  of  a hospital  much  labour  and  thought ; and 
strangely  enough,  it  is  one  of  which  many  of  those 
who  go  out  as  medical  missionaries  possess  little  or  no 
knowledge.  Here  we  have  to  do,  not  with  purely 
professional  or  evangelistic  duties,  but  with  all  those 
business  and  financial  relations  which  concern  a public 
institution.  The  medical  missionary  has  to  keep  the 
hospital  books,  administer  the  general  life  and  work  of 
the  hospital,  engage,  and  pay  the  native  staff,  frame 
annual  estimates  of  the  receipts  and  expenditure,  and 
attend  to  all  the  many  questions  that  concern  the 
maintenance  of  such  an  establishment.  He  has  to 
bring  into  play  powers  or  organisation,  and  be  prepared 
to  be  many  things  in  turn.  Now  and  then  he  may  have 
to  doff  the  role  of  the  physician,  and  don  that  of  the 
architect  and  builder.  Occasionally  he  may  have  to 
spend  hours  considering  matters  which  lie  as  far  apart  as 
the  poles  from  his  professional  work,  and  yet  upon  whose 
efficient  conduct  may  hinge  much  of  the  success  of  the 
Medical  Mission.  It  is,  of  course,  perfectly  true  that  this 
administrative  work  can  never  rank  pari  passu  in  im- 
portance with  the  other  departments  of  a medical 
missionary’s  work,  but  that  does  not  minimise  the 
large  share  that  it  is  bound  to  take  in  the  daily  routine 
of  a medical  station.  There  is  not  a medical  missionary  of 
experience  who  will  not  endorse  the  truth  of  this  fact.  No 
review  of  the  practice  of  a Medical  Mission  would  there- 
fore be  complete  without  some  reference  to  this  aspect  of 
its  work,  and  in  directing  attention  to  it,  we  would  ex- 
press the  hope  that  as  far  as  may  be  possible  all  intending 
medical  missionaries  would  secure,  before  departure  for 
the  field,  some  acquaintance  with  hospital  administration. 


138  PRACTICE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Medical  Missions  will  thus  be  seen  to  cover  a wide 
field  in  their  beneficient  ministry,  and  we  venture  to 
think  that  it  will  be  felt  by  all  who  are  students  of 
missionary  methods  that  medical  missionaries  have 
certainly  adopted  sound  and  fruitful  lines  in  practising 
their  great  and  two-fold  calling.  Bright  with  the 
richest  promise  as  well  as  with  the  record  of  notable 
success,  the  work  of  our  Medical  Missions  stands  be- 
fore the  Christian  Church  to-day,  and  appeals  for  its 
sympathy  and  liberality.  Here  in  its  practice  are 
embodied  some  of  the  finest  types  of  Christian  service, 
and  visions  of  some  of  the  most  glorious  ideals. 
Whether  these  will  be  realised  speedily,  or  in  the  dim 
future,  depends  on  the  measure  of  devoted  giving, 
both  in  life  and  treasure,  that  the  churches  display 
towards  this  work.  The  issues  lies  with  them,  or 
rather  with  the  individuals  composing  their  member- 
ship. Shall  it  be  half-hearted  support,  or  generous 
practical  sympathy  ? 


CHAPTER  VIII 


women’s  sphere  in  medical  missions 

"In  the  poor  man’s  home  where  the  newly-born  girl  baby  is  not 
wanted,  the  woman  physician  does  the  work  of  an  Evangelist  by 
telling  of  a Heavenly  Father’s  love  for  even  this  tiny  babe.  To  the 
crowd  on  the  street  where  a woman  has  taken  poison  and  thrown 
herself  on  the  doorstep  of  her  adversary  to  die,  she  tells  the  story  of 
redeeming  love.  Many  a sufferer  turns  to  kiss  the  shadow  of  these 
Santa  Filomenas  as  it  falls  upon  the  wall  in  hospital  or  home.” — 
Arthur  H.  Smith  in  Rex  Ghrislus. 

It  will  not  come  as  any  surprise  to  those  who  have 
pondered  certain  of  the  facts  contained  in  some  of 
the  preceding  chapters,  that  the  share  which  women 
are  called  upon  to  take  in  the  work  of  Medical  Missions 
is  both  large  and  important.  At  the  great  Edinburgh 
Conference  of  1910,  as  field  after  field  came  under  notice, 
and  problems  of  a diverse  character  were  discussed, 
the  conclusion  was  arrived  at  with  almost  unvarying 
precision,  that  without  the  work  that  could  be  done 
by  Christian  women,  and  done  by  them  alone,  the  task 
of  world-wide  evangelisation  would  be  indefinitely 
postponed.  And  if  from  such  a conclusion  we  proceed 
to  investigate  the  special  directions  in  which  the  service 
of  women  missionaries  is  most  urgently  required,  a 
careful  consideration  shows  that  medical  work  carried  on 
by  trained  medical  women  and  qualified  nurses  amongst 
their  suffering  heathen  and  Moslem  sisters,  represents 
a sphere  of  missionary  labour  than  which  none  is  more 
needed,  or  offers  greater  possibilities  of  doing  good. 

139 


140 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


It  is  a well-known  fact  that  the  vast  majority  of  the 
women  of  mission  lands  can  only  be  reached  by  women 
in  the  work  of  education  and  general  instruction  in 
the  truths  of  the  Gospel.  How  much  more  then  does 
it  become  apparent  that  when  those  women  are  in 
suffering  and  physical  need,  when  many  of  life’s  secrets 
have  to  be  probed,  their  condition  can  only  be  met  by 
a skill  which  is  applied  by  a woman  doctor  or  nurse. 
Hidden  in  the  seclusion  of  their  homes,  frequently 
the  victims  of  appalling  mal-treatment  in  their  hour 
of  need,  and  poignant  sufferers  too  often  from  many  a 
cruel  disease,  the  women  of  heathen  lands  present  a 
spectacle  that  appeals  to  every  noble  and  Christian 
instinct  in  their  more  favoured  sisters  of  Christian 
lands  for  immediate  succour  and  relief. 

Moreover,  no  time  is  so  favourable  for  giving  to 
them  an  interpretation  of  Christianity,  which  they 
can  grasp  and  understand,  as  when  under  the  loving 
gracious  ministry  of  a medical  sister  they  are  finding 
their  pain  relieved  and  their  disease  cured.  The  message 
of  a God  of  love,  so  difficult  at  other  times  for  them  to 
appreciate,  becomes  then  an  easy  revelation,  and  the 
door  of  healing  one  through  which  they  find  an  entry 
into  a saving  knowledge  of  the  truth. 

Accordingly  we  are  brought  in  our  study  of  Medical 
Missions  to  a point  that  is  of  particular  interest,  and 
far-reaching  significance.  This  aspect  of  the  work 
is  obviously  no  subsidiary  or  purely  departmental 
question.  It  is  one  which  may  indeed  lay  claim  to 
the  most  sympathetic  attention  and  the  amplest 
measure  of  support.  Medical  Missions  by  women 
and  for  women  are  destined  to  do  far  more  than  bring 
the  balm  of  healing  to  many  a poor  sufferer.  They 
are  calculated  to  exert  an  influence  which  goes  to  the 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


141 


very  springs  of  the  life  of  the  nations  purifying  it  at 
its  source  and  centre.  Degraded  womanhood  and 
neglected  childhood  are  again  and  again  the  terrible 
hall-marks  of  non-Christian  civilization,  and  these  are 
subjected  by  women’s  medical  missions  to  a process 
that  bids  fair  to  remove  their  black  stains.  Henry 
Ward  Beecher  once  said  that  Christianity  was  “ the 
gift  of  a burning  heart  to  a world  out  of  heart  ” and  it 
may  surely  be  said  that  our  lady  medical  missionaries 
and  missionary  nurses  are  pre-eminently  those  whose 
peculiar  ministry  renders  them  fit  bearers  of  that  gift. 

We  propose  to  touch  briefly  upon  (1)  the  particular 
needs  which  necessitate  the  work  of  women  doctors 
on  the  mission  field,  and  (2)  the  sphere  of  service  that  is 
open  to  a nurse  missionary. 

1.  Why  women  doctors  are  needed. 

Five  separate  reasons  suggest  themselves  for  our 
scrutiny,  and  will  repay  the  thought  that  we  may  give 
to  them. 

(a)  By  women  doctors  alone  can  the  very  great  amount 
of  'pitiful  suffering  prevailing  amongst  immense  multitudes 
of  heathen  and  Moslem  women  he  effectually  alleviated 
or  cured.  Who  can  adequately  put  into  words,  or  convey 
a true  conception  of  the  awful  amount  of  unnecessary 
and  preventable  suffering  which  is  the  daily  lot  of 
unknown  numbers  of  sick  women  in  the  non-Christian 
countries  of  the  world  ! None  save  those  heroic  and 
Christlike  women  who  have  devoted  their  lives  to 
Zenana  Missions  can  ever  really  know  the  depths  of 
that  suffering.  Others  can  only  judge  from  what  they 
have  been  told.  But  taking  the  facts  that  have  been 
revealed  and  facing  their  stern  reality,  we  are  compelled 
to  acknowledge  that  here  exists  one  of  the  open  sores 
of  the  world. 

Think  of  the  Hindu  woman  in  her  hour  of  travail. 


142 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


At  such  a time  neglect  is  the  only  word  to  use  for  the 
way  she  is  treated.  Of  even  native  “ hakims  ” there  are 
virtually  none  who  are  called  in.  Practically  speaking, 
the  poor  woman  in  the  pangs  of  childbirth  has  no  help(!) 
save  the  ignorant,  meddlesome  interference  of  native 
nurses.  Barbarous  practices  are  resorted  to,  and  in 
the  name  of  religion  the  most  shocking  treatment 
meted  out  to  the  sufferers.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  the 
death-rate  of  both  women  and  children  is  said  to  be 
enormous  ? If  it  were  permissible  it  would  be  possible 
to  here  cite  a whole  catalogue  of  cases  revealing  how 
unspeakably  sad  is  the  state  of  Indian  women  in  their 
time  of  physical  need. 

The  late  Dr  John  Lowe  quoted  in  his  book,  “ Medical 
Missions.  Their  Place  and  Power,”  the  opinion  of  Mrs 
Weitbrecht,  a well-known  Zenana  Missionary. 

“ All  Hindu  women,  whether  rich  or  poor,  are  utterly 
neglected  in  the  time  of  sickness.  Prejudices  and 
customs  banish  medical  aid  altogether ; infectious 
and  other  diseases  are  left  to  take  their  own  course. 
Two  thousand  children  not  very  long  ago,  were  left  to 
perish  from  small-pox  in  one  city.  A female  Medical 
Mission,  one  in  every  populous  centre  is  one  of  the  most 
crying  needs  of  India  ; an  agency  which  would  find  its 
way  into  those  dark  dirty  miserable  dwellings,  where 
fever,  ophthalmia,  and  other  ills  spread  unchecked.” 

In  their  ignorance  women  have  been  known  to  grind 
red  pottery  ware  into  a powder  and  dust  this  into 
eyes  afflicted  with  simple  ophthalmia.  On  one  occasion 
a lady  doctor  in  North  India  was  called  to  see  a poor 
sick  woman,  ill  with  high  fever.  She  was,  in  fact, 
delirious.  Her  native  nurses,  so  called,  were  piling 
bedding  all  over  her,  almost  stifling  her,  with  the  idea 
that  the  air  thus  excluded  from  the  patient  was  the 
cause  of  the  delirium  ! 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


143 


If  we  turn  our  attention  to  China,  we  find  it  is  the 
same  sad  story.  Dr  Kilbom,  writing  of  Chinese  mid- 
wives, says  that  they  are  “ just  as  ignorant  as  any 
other  class  of  Chinese  women  about  such  things,  and 
more  meddlesome  and  venturesome.  They  have  no 
more  idea  of  the  importance  of  cleanliness  and  of  quiet 
intelligent  nursing  that  had  Sary  Gamp  of  old,  while 
the  methods  they  use  in  difficult  cases  are  revolting, 
no  less  for  the  ignorance  and  actual  mismanagement 
displayed  than  for  the  cruelty.  It  is  not  at  all  un- 
common for  such  cases  to  be  protracted  through  several 
days  of  weary  agony,  until  death  comes  to  the  patient’s 
relief.  Not  a few  Chinese  women  owe  their  lives  to 
the  prompt  and  efficient  aid  given  them  by  the  women 
medical  missionaries,  after  they  had  already  suffered 
untold  tortures  from  neglect  or  maltreatment,  or  both.” 

And  so  we  might  go  on,  summing  up  the  evidence 
of  land  after  land,  and  it  would  be  one  reiterated 
tale  of  a great  and  crying  woe  that  appeals  loudly 
for  succour.  If  then  the  sufferings  of  sick  heathen 
men  are  what  we  have  seen  them  to  be  in  an  earlier 
chapter,  how  much  worse  is  the  plight  of  their  women 
folk? 

But  the  point  which  it  is  here  desired  to  emphasize  is 
not  so  much  the  existence  of  this  appalling  condition,  as 
the  fact  that  women  doctors  alone  can  do  what  is  needed 
to  mitigate  the  suffering,  at  least  in  the  vast  majority 
of  instances.  The  purdah  system  in  India,  the  institu- 
tion of  the  harem  amongst  Moslems,  the  retirement  of 
the  Chinese  women,  all  means  that  the  women  of  heathen- 
dom and  Islam,  to  a very  great  extent,  cannot,  or  will 
not  come  to  men  doctors.  However  keenly  he  may 
long  to  see  women  sufferers,  for  whom  his  aid  is  desired, 
in  order  that  he  may  efficiently  treat  them,  the  male 
medical  missionary  cannot  often  do  so,  as  custom 


144 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


forbids.  At  the  utmost  he  may  be  permitted  to  sit 
on  one  side  of  a curtain,  with  his  lady  patient  on  the 
other,  and  feel  the  pulse  in  a wrist  that  may  be  pressed 
through  an  opening  made  for  the  purpose.  But  this 
even  is  impossible  in  most  of  the  cases,  and  again  and 
again  the  man  doctor  who  asks  to  see  the  woman  patient 
who  is  said  to  be  suffering  from  this  or  that — perhaps 
a broken  bone — is  met  with  the  answer,  “ That  cannot 
be  ; it  is  not  our  custom.”  So  awful  indeed  is  the 
terrible  slavery  of  this  custom  that  rather  than  let  a 
woman  sufferer  be  seen  by  a man  doctor,  whose  skill 
is  the  very  thing  needed,  and  the  only  real  help  available, 
the  patient  will  be  left  to  linger  in  untold  anguish  and 
die  a perfectly  preventable  death.  True  this  does  not 
apply  to  all  the  women  of  non-Christian  lands.  Some 
of  the  lower  class  women  in  India  and  China  are  relatively 
accessible  to  the  treatment  of  men,  and  the  same  is 
the  case  in  some  other  lands.  But  speaking  of  the  large 
majority,  it  is  an  absolute  fact  that  women  patients 
can  only  be  reached  effectively  by  women  doctors,  and 
that  in  consequence  a call  of  the  greatest  urgency  comes 
over  the  seas  from  their  suffering  sisters  to  the  Christian 
medical  women  in  the  Homeland. 

Closely  akin  to  the  work  for  sick  women  is  that  for 
sick  children,  and  it  is  appropriate  at  this  juncture 
that  we  should  make  brief  allusion  to  it.  The  terrible 
prevalence  of  children’s  diseases,  and  the  great  fatality 
arising  from  them  is  one  of  the  saddost  features  of  the 
non-Christian  world.  Who  can  measure  the  neglect, 
to  speak  of  nothing  worse,  with  which  young  lives 
are  treated  to-day  in  these  lands  of  ignorance  and 
superstition.  Think  of  the  thousands  whose  eyesight 
is  irretrievably  ruined  by  ophthalmia  simply  for  lack 
of  the  simplest  medical  care  ! Reflect  upon  the  devas- 
tating ravages  of  Fevers,  of  Small-pox,  and  of  many 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


145 


another  epidemic  disease  which  are  allowed,  all  un- 
hindered, to  lay  their  fell  hand  with  lamentable  results 
upon  the  children  of  heathen  and  Moslem  countries  ! 
It  is  impossible  to  disguise  the  awful  reality  of  what 
sickness  means  to  the  boys  and  girls  whose  lot  it  is 
to  be  bom  in  those  lands,  and  the  existence  of  such 
a state  of  things  furnishes  yet  another  eloquent 
plea  for  the  gracious  ministry  of  women  medical 
missionaries. 

Let  us  turn  over  the  records  of  one  women’s  hospital 
in  the  North  of  China  (Tai  Yuan  Fu),  and  from  the 
notes  of  the  lady  doctor  then  in  charge — Mrs  J.  H. 
Fairburn,  M.B.,  Ch.B. — extract  the  following  example 
of  great  need,  and  heroic  work  : — 

“ The  next  child,  Tung  Hsia  (flower  of  the  east),  also 
has  a sad  story.  One  day,  when  I entered  the  hospital 
I saw  a wheelbarrow  outside  the  gate,  with  a bundle 
of  dirty  rags  on  it,  and  something  gangrenous  looking 
out  from  underneath.  I thought  that  it  was  the  carcass 
of  some  animal,  and  wondered  why  they  were  stopping 
before  my  doors.  But  not  long  after  a bundle  of  human 
misery  was  brought  into  my  consulting-room,  and  I 
recognised  the  bundle  of  rags  I had  seen  on  the  wheel- 
barrow. Her  condition  was  so  terrible  that  my  native 
helper  fled  in  horror  out  of  the  room.  I nearly  fainted 
myself,  but  Condy’s  Fluid  soon  did  its  work,  and  I 
examined  the  bundle.  The  state  of  this  poor  little 
sufferer  only  nine  years  old,  was  beyond  description. 
Both  feet  were  so  seriously  diseased,  I told  the  man 
who  brought  her  that  I should  have  to  amputate  the 
left  one,  and  that  the  child  would  have  to  live  in  the 
hospital  for  some  time.  He  was  very  willing  that  I 
should  do  so,  and  went  away,  the  child  crying  after  him. 
I then  stripped  off  her  rags,  cut  off  her  hair,  and  gave 
K 


146 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


her  a good  scrubbing,  but  Tung  Hsia  did  not  like  that 
process,  and  screamed  ; when,  however,  I showed  her 
the  pretty  garment  I was  going  to  give  her,  and  the 
pretty  quilt  (which  my  good  friends  at  Bradford  made) 
in  which  she  would  be  wrapped,  she  began  to  smile 
and  to  be  good.  Most  people  bring  their  own  bedding, 
but  this  child  was  so  poor  that  I had  to  supply  every- 
thing, even  to  pay  for  her  food.  You  see  her  here 
with  one  leg  and  a stump,  and  before  she  went  away 
she  had  a wooden  leg,  of  which  she  was  very  proud, 
and  she  could  walk  better  than  other  girls  with  their 
bound  feet.  Her  previous  history  was  as  follows  : — 
Her  mother  died  six  months  before  Tung  Hsia  was 
brought  to  the  hospital.  She  was  then  sent  to  the  house 
of  her  mother-in-law,  who  bound  her  feet,  gave  her 
poor  food,  and  no  warm  bed  and  clothing,  and  owing 
to  the  foot-binding,  and  the  cold,  the  child’s  feet  got 
gangrenous.  She  was  then  left  lying  in  her  corner 
without  any  attention.  Her  father,  who  brought  her 
to  the  hospital,  found  her  thus  ; the  mother-in-law 
feared  that  she  would  be  sued  for  neglecting  the  child, 
but  on  hearing  that  Tung  Hsia  had  a foot  amputated 
at  the  hospital,  she  turned  the  case  the  other  way, 
and  wanted  to  sue  the  father  for  bringing  his  daughter 
to  the  hospital.  So  I had  to  defend  the  father  by  stating 
to  the  official  the  neglected  state  in  which  I saw  the 
child  first,  and  that  her  life  could  have  been  saved 
only  by  what  was  done. 

“ Tung  Hsia  did  not  want  to  go  home,  because  she 
never  got  white  flour  to  eat  at  home,  and  also  was  not 
treated  well.  She  wanted  to  serve  me  and  stay  at  the 
hospital,  but  one  day  her  father  came  and  fetched  her 
home,  because  she  had  to  take  care  of  a little  brother. 
The  poor  child  was  only  nine  years  of  age,  and  her 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  147 

father,  being  shepherd,  is  away  from  home  for  weeks. 
She  was  not  bright,  but  she  understood  something  of 
the  love  of  Christ  for  men.  Let  us  pray  that  the  seed 
sown,  however  small,  may  not  be  smothered  amid  the 
poverty  and  hardship  which  awaits  that  poor  child.” 
This  instance  is  but  one,  and  yet  is,  we  think,  suffi- 
ciently illuminating  to  bring  clearly  home  to  every- 
one’s mind  how  pathetic  is  the  call  for  help  of  this 
kind.  Moreover,  it  is  not  merely  that  the  value  of  this 
work  ends  with  the  relief  of  the  children  who  are  in 
need.  In  case  after  case,  it  has  been  found  that  many 
hearts  and  homes  and  districts  have  been  opened  to 
the  Gospel  by  reason  of  the  healing  of  some  sick  child. 
Not  a few  instances  are  on  record  where  the  attention 
of  a medical  missionary  to  the  suffering  son  of  a 
native  ruler,  has  meant  an  entire  change  of  attitude 
on  the  part  of  the  people  to  missionary  work.  It  is 
therefore  clear  that  the  service  which  lady  doctors,  in 
particular,  can  render  to  heathen  children  is  calculated 
to  be  of  far-reaching  importance. 

(b)  By  women  doctors  and  their  work  can  the  men  of 
the  non-Christian  world  be  taught  the  true  dignity  of 
womanhood,  and  given  an  ennobled  conception  of  their 
womenfolk. — In  his  book,  “ The  Healing  of  the  Nations,” 
Dr  Rutter  Williamson  says  with  truth  that  “ the  fact 
that  medical  missionaries  care  for  sick  women  is  a 
revolutionizing  idea  to  the  heathen  man,  and  lays  the 
foundations  for  a new  era  for  womanhood  in  these  lands  ” 
Nothing  can  be  truer.  To  see  Christian  lady  doctors 
coming  to  a country  specially  to  care  for  its  sick  women, 
to  witness  sums  of  money  being  spent  for  the  erection 
of  hospitals  in  which  to  treat  exclusively  women  who 
are  ill,  all  this  and  related  work  is  an  absolute  revolution 
to  the  heathen  man.  It  leads  him  to  begin,  however 
remotely,  to  think  differently  of  his  women,  and  gradu- 


148 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


ally  to  conceive  a higher  status  for  them  than  what 
he  has  accorded  to  them  in  the  past.  And  thus,  insensibly 
at  first,  yet  none  the  less  surely,  women  medical  mission- 
aries are  undermining  the  social  degradation  of  women 
in  non-Christian  lands,  and  preparing  the  way  for  their 
emancipation  and  uplifting. 

As  an  instance  of  how  much  this  is  needed,  and  to 
show  how  low  is  the  present  estimate  placed  by 
heathen  men  upon  their  women,  we  quote  here  the  story, 
mentioned  by  Miss  Irene  Barnes,  of  a lady  missionary, 
who,  having  been  called  to  treat  a poor  sick  woman, 
asked  her  husband  to  let  his  wife  have  a good  room  in 
his  house,  then  occupied  by  a big  buffalo.  He  objected, 
saying,  “ If  I put  my  wife  into  that  room,  and  my 
buffalo  in  the  other,  the  buffalo  may  get  sick  as  my 
wife  has  done.”  The  lady  answered,  “ But  your  wife 
will  die  if  she  stays  where  she  is  ; let  her  have  the  better 
room.”  He  replied,  “ If  I give  the  buffalo  the  poor 
room,  and  he  gets  sick  and  dies,  it  will  cost  more  to 
buy  a buffalo  than  it  does  a woman  ! ” Can  there  be 
anything  more  illustrative  of  the  low  estate  of  heathen 
womanhood  ? Anything  more  pathetic  in  the  insight 
which  it  gives  into  the  despairing  condition  of  the  sick 
heathen  woman  ? If  then  it  is  the  mission  of  Christianity 
to  raise  that  estate  and  turn  that  despair  into  hope,  and 
if,  further,  women  medical  missionaries  can  most  effec- 
tively contribute  to  the  accomplishment  of  both  those 
ends,  how  great  is  the  responsibility  resting  upon  us  to 
multiply  the  number  of  women  doctors  on  the  Mission 
field? 

(c)  By  women  doctors  and  their  work  can  superstition 
he  weakened  at  its  core. — We  have  already  seen  in  an 
earlier  chapter  how  strong  is  the  power  of  superstition 
in  the  heathen  peoples’  conception  of  disease  and  its 
cure.  It  is  now  necessary  that  wo  should  realize  the 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


149 


fact  that  this  fell  influence  finds  its  citadel  amongst  the 
women.  As  Miss  Irene  Barnes  wrote  again,  “ It  is  the 
women  who  in  their  ignorance  and  with  their  fervent 
religious  instinct  cling  most  tenaciously  to  superstitions, 
and  are  the  firmest  believers  in  Demonology.” 

Excluded  from  the  light,  shut  in  to  the  darkness, 
having  none  of  those  broader  influences  that  touch  the 
life  of  the  heathen  man,  is  it  any  wonder  that  super- 
stition both  gains  and  retains  its  hold  over  the  women  in 
their  homes  ? Having  a knowledge  of  nothing  better, 
narrowed  by  her  ignorance  and  seclusion  and  easily 
imbued  and  dominated  by  error,  the  heathen  woman  offers 
just  the  soil  in  which  the  noxious  weed  of  superstition, 
both  in  regard  to  religion  and  medicine,  grows  apace. 

Now  it  is  only  by  reaching  sick  women,  winning 
their  confidence,  and  caring  for  their  suffering  state 
that  an  efficient  antidote  can  be  administered  to  the 
baneful  products  of  this  growth.  The  woman  medical 
missionary,  by  the  object  lesson  she  gives  of  mercy, 
and  truth,  and  by  the  spirit  of  loving  compassion 
which  she  carries  with  her,  is  enabled  to  weaken  super- 
stitious belief  right  at  the  spot  where  it  holds  greatest 
sway.  She  is  able  to  relax  the  grip  that  has  hitherto 
held  the  women  in  heathen  lands  in  abject  bondage  to 
the  omnipotence  of  malign  spirits,  and  demonstrate  the 
Presence  of  Him  who  is  the  “ Great  Light  and  Healer 
of  Mankind.”  Her  ministry  as  healer  is  at  once  her 
open  door,  and  her  point  d’appui,  and  the  God  given 
rays  of  scientific  light  which  are  carried  by  her  into  the 
darkened  recesses  of  the  hearts  and  minds  of  the  heathen 
home  are  again  and  again  the  shafts  that  strike  a death 
blow  at  superstition.  Can  it  then  be  doubted  that  in 
the  work  of  women  medical  missionaries  we  have  a 
most  powerful  auxiliary  in  the  illumination  of  the  dark 
places  of  the  earth  ? 


150 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


(d)  By  women  doctors  alone  in  numberless  cases  can 
the  homes  of  heathendom  and  Islam  he  entered  with  the 
Gospel. — All  that  has  been  said  before  concerning  the 
work  of  women  medical  missionaries  will  have  rendered 
it  perfectly  apparent  that  to  them  and  them  only, 
time  after  time,  comes  the  opportunity  to  be  the  heralds 
of  the  Gospel  to  the  women  inmates  of  a household. 
If  they  are  those  to  whom  the  door  of  entrance  opens 
when  to  others  it  is  shut  then  it  is  obvious  that  to  them 
is  given  the  privilege  of  ministering  the  bread  of  life 
to  the  people  whom  they  are  called  to  heal.  Let  us  quote 
the  following  words  of  a lady  doctor  in  India  (Dr  Nina 
Ottmann  of  Russell  Konda) : 

“ The  best  zenanas  are  open  to  the  medical  missionary. 
The  common  experience  of  pain  makes  them  seek  relief, 
and  so  we  are  asked  to  call.  Some  of  our  best  hearers 
are  in  these  homes.  In  one  such  home  in  Berhampore 
the  husband  is  a merchant  and  very  wealthy.  He  is 
impressed  by  Christianity,  but  he  feels  it  is  not  for  him, 
as  it  calls  for  such  a readjustment  of  life  as  he  is  not 
prepared  to  make.  This  reveals  the  fact  that  Hindus 
are  realizing  that  Christianity  is  not  only  a creed,  but 
a life,  an  ideal  life.  He  has  given  large  contributions 
to  the  medical  work  and  helped  us  in  other  ways.  His 
wife  and  daughters  are  charming  beautiful  women. 
Their  attitude  to  Christianity  is  very  different  to  his. 
When  one  of  the  daughters  was  ill  with  remittent  fever 
I had  many  opportunities  of  talking  with  her  and  the 
other  women  of  the  family  about  Christ.  The  grand- 
mother of  the  girl  was  the  most  attentive  listener ; 
with  intense  earnestness  and  a certain  awe  she  would 
listen  and  beg  for  more  when  I stopped  speaking.  To 
her  there  was  something  fresh  in  the  Gospel  that  was 
good  news.  I lent  them  books  ; they  gathered  in  the 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


151 


sick  room  and  read  voraciously,  and  each  evening 
there  would  be  a demand  for  fresh  books.  One  evening 
the  sick  girl  said  to  me,  * These  books  sound  true,  and 
if  they  are  we  are  terribly  deluded,  and  we  have  no 
alternative  but  to  accept  Christ.’  I cannot  say  that 
any  of  them  have  definitely  accepted  Christ,  but  they 
are  still  eager  listeners  and  are  regularly  visited  for 
teaching,  and  one  never  knows  when  the  crisis  of  decision 
for  Christ  may  come.” 

Testimony  like  the  foregoing  could  be  cited  from 
the  experience  of  women  medical  missionaries  on  all 
hands,  and  it  serves  to  emphasize  how  extensive  and 
unique  is  the  sphere  open  to  those  who  devote  their 
lives  and  talents  to  this  service. 

Take  as  a further  instance  of  the  tremendous  value  of 
women’s  Medical  Missions  the  following  incident  from 
recent  mission  history.  A few  years  ago,  Dr  Mary  Raw, 
a lady  medical  missionary  in  the  North  of  India,  was 
sent  by  her  mission  to  open  a zenana  dispensary,  in 
the  capital  of  a native  state  in  the  North  of  India. 
Up  to  that  time  the  way  had  not  been  open  for  any 
Missionary  to  reside  in  this  state,  and  the  only  way 
to  accomplish  that  end  seemed  to  be  by  sending  a lady 
medical  missionary.  At  first  Dr  Raw  met  with  no 
great  encouragement,  but  presently  she  was  asked  to 
see  a patient  who  was  seriously  ill,  and  whose  life 
could  only  be  saved  by  the  performance  of  a critical 
operation.  Dr  Raw  obtained  the  help  of  colleagues 
from  another  station,  and  under  conditions  the  farthest 
removed  from  the  ideal  she  carried  through  the  operation 
successfully.  The  result  was  remarkable.  The  recovery 
of  the  patient  was  regarded  as  a miracle.  People  began 
coming  to  Dr  Raw  from  all  directions.  One  of  the  high- 
est officials  called  to  express  his  pleasure  at  the  com- 
mencement of  medical  work  for  women,  and  the  people, 


152 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


high  and  low,  begged  that  the  work  might  be  continued. 
Later  on,  a site  was  given  for  a mission  bungalow,  and 
a women’s  hospital,  and  a local  fund  was  contributed 
for  the  latter.  Dr  Raw  and  her  colleague,  Nurse  Henry, 
have  been  called  to  exercise  their  professional  skill 
in  the  palace  of  the  native  Ruler,  and  it  has  been 
demonstrated  beyond  all  proof  that  the  mission  could 
have  been  commended  to  the  sympathies  of  the  people 
in  no  finer  way  than  by  this  Women’s  Medical  Mission. 

The  same  story  might,  with  varying  details,  be  told 
of  the  work  of  women  doctors  all  over  the  mission  field, 
and  no  words  are  too  strong  to  describe  the  invaluable 
character  of  this  aspect  of  Medical  Missions. 

(e)  By  women  doctors  and  their  work  as  education- 
alists can  Native  Christian  Women  be  trained  to  become 
Medical  Missionaries  to  their  own  countrywomen. — It 
will  be  apparent  to  all  from  what  has  been  said  upon 
an  earlier  page  how  manifest  is  the  necessity  not  only 
for  a trained  native  male  agency  in  the  work  of  Medical 
Missions,  but  also  for  an  educated  female  medical  agency. 
The  little  band  of  women  doctors  sent  out  to  such  lands 
as  India  and  China,  including  those  labouring  in  a non- 
missionary capacity,  can  never  by  themselves  alone 
touch  more  than  a fringe  of  the  suffering  womanhood 
of  these  great  fields.  The  fact  is  obvious  that  one  of 
the  most  important,  one  of  the  most  far-reaching  ways, 
in  which  women  doctors  can  lay  out  their  life  and 
service  on  the  mission  field,  is  in  the  training  of  suitable 
native  Christian  women  to  be  Medical  Missionaries 
amongst  their  own  people.  Up  to  the  present  this 
has,  of  necessity,  been  a restricted  sphere,  but  it  is 
bound  to  grow,  and  to  become  one  which  will  call  for 
many  more  well-qualified  lady  doctors. 

It  is  clear,  however,  that  the  task  of  giving  this 
female  medical  education  on  the  mission  field  is  one 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


153 


that  is  attended  with  special  dangers  and  difficulties. 
The  young  womanhood  of  the  non-Christian  world  is 
but  yet  in  its  early  days,  and  stands  in  urgent  need  of 
all  the  careful  shielding  and  wise  training  that  can  be 
given  to  it.  The  moral  consciousness  of  the  environ- 
ment with  which  it  is  surrounded  is  still  so  far  from 
Christian  that  unless  the  work  of  giving  full  medical 
instruction  to  young  native  women  is  encompassed 
with  special  precautions,  and  in  an  atmosphere  that 
is  distinctively  Christian,  the  results  may  be,  in  all  too 
many  instances,  disastrous  alike  to  faith  and  character. 
Everything  points  to  the  tremendous  necessity  for 
retaining  the  work  of  female  medical  education  in  the 
hands  of  strong  Christian  teachers,  and  in  schools 
which  are  Christian,  in  name  and  deed. 

The  recognition  of  this  need  has  led  already  in  both 
India  and  China  to  the  establishment  of  medical  schools 
for  women  in  connection  with  Medical  Missions.  As 
far  back  as  1894  the  North  India  School  of  Medicine 
for  Christian  women  was  founded  at  Ludhiana  by 
Dr  Edith  Brown,  having  as  its  primary  object  the 
training  of  “ such  women  as  desire  to  engage  in  Zenana 
Medical  Missions,  and  to  fit  them  to  be  medical  mis- 
sionaries to  their  countrywomen.”  The  school  has 
had  an  encouraging  record,  and  its  scope  has  recently 
been  enlarged  to  admit  non-Christian  students  as  well 
as  those  who  are  Christian.  It  is  now  styled  the 
“ Women’s  Christian  Medical  College,”  as  its  sphere 
of  influence  is  not  limited  to  North  India.  The  course 
of  study  lasts  for  four  years,  and  the  students  sit  for 
Government  diplomas  in  connection  with  the  Lahore 
University.  Similarly  in  China  there  has  been  for 
some  considerable  time  a Women’s  Medical  College 
at  Canton  in  connection  with  the  Presbtyerian  Mission, 
and  also  one  at  Peking  in  connection  with  the  work  of 


154 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


the  Methodist  Episcopal  Mission.  The  aim  of  the 
various  union  medical  colleges  now  being  established 
in  China  will  be  to  develop  a women’s  department 
for  the  purpose  of  training  women  medical  students, 
but  to  allow  of  this  being  done  many  more  lady  doctors 
must  be  sent  to  China.  At  present  the  number  is 
hopelessly  inadequate. 

The  educational  work  that  can  thus  be  done  by 
women  medical  missionaries  on  the  Mission  Field  is 
consequently  full  of  the  ripest  opportunity.  It  should 
serve  to  attract  many  more  volunteers  from  the  ranks 
of  our  women  medical  graduates  here  at  home,  and 
the  great  call  that  sounds  forth  for  their  training 
work  can  certainly  be  regarded  as  not  the  least  of  the 
arguments  for  lady  doctors  in  the  service  of  Medical 
Missions. 

And  so  we  close  this  sketch  of  the  main  reasons  wrhy 
women  medical  missionaries  are  needed.  It  cannot  be 
said  that  we  have  done  more  than  scratch  the  surface. 
This  wide  vista  of  human  need  and  Christian  opportunity 
which  summons  workers  to  its  exploration  and  seizure 
for  Christ  cannot  be  dismissed  in  a few  sentences. 
The  argument  for  the  medical  aspect  of  women’s 
missionary  service  is  an  immensely  strong  one,  and 
the  appeal  that  it  presents  to  our  young,  educated, 
Christian  girls  to  make  such  ministry  their  life-work, 
is  both  powerful  and  pathetic. 

And  the  amazing  wonder  is  that  so  few  amongst 
our  cultured  Christian  girlhood  are  preparing  to  conse- 
crate their  lives  to  this  calling.  Is  it  because  they  do 
not  know  of  the  need  or  has  the  charm  of  an  easy  life 
here,  freed  from  the  years  of  arduous  study  and  subse- 
quent exacting  work  in  a far-off  land,  dulled  their  ears 
to  the  “ cry  of  pain  ” that  comes  across  the  seas. 
Surely  the  spirit  of  Florence  Nightingale  cannot  have 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


155 


so  died  out  from  the  girlhood  of  our  churches  as  to  make 
the  latter  the  sad,  yet  true,  explanation  ! Certain  is 
it  that  if  a girl  of  seventeen  wants  to  put  out  her  life  to 
the  greatest  usefulness  both  for  God  and  humanity,  she 
can  hardly  select  a calling  more  calculated  to  fulfil  these 
ideals  and  call  out  the  noblest  and  finest  elements  in  her 
nature  than  that  of  a medical  missionary. 

Of  all  bits  of  glorious  and  heroic  work  that  are  to 
be  found  on  the  globe  to-day,  that  of  a lady  medical 
missionary  stands  out  pre-eminent.  “ Noblesse  oblige  ” 
is  stamped  upon  it  all.  And  as  our  girl  readers  or 
young  medical  women  graduates  realise  these  facts, 
and  recollect  that  upon  the  great  Mission  Field  there 
are  women  and  little  children  suffering  the  pangs  of  a 
pain  which  might  be  taken  away,  and  a two-fold 
disease  that  might  be  cured,  will  they  refrain  from 
asking  Christ  whether  He  would  not  have  them 
become  medical  missionaries  ? 

2.  The  Sphere  of  a Nurse  Missionary. 

It  may  perhaps  be  well  if  we  commence  our  con- 
sideration of  the  work  falling  to  the  lot  of  a nurse 
missionary  by  defining  who  is  meant  by  this  designation, 
the  more  so  as  there  has  been  much  confusion  concerning 
the  application  of  the  title.  By  a nurse  missionary 
we  mean  a Christian  lady  who  has  acquired  a full 
nursing  training,  and  who,  possessing  in  addition  the 
general  qualifications  essential  to  missionary  work, 
decides  to  devote  her  life  to  the  nursing  side  of  Medical 
Missions.  That  description,  it  will  be  seen,  places  the 
work  of  nurse  missionaries,  just  as  is  the  case  in  the  work 
of  medical  missionaries,  upon  a thoroughly  qualified 
basis.  They  are  not  missionary  ladies  who  have  obtained 
a smattering  of  nursing  or  have  become  qualified  in  just 
one  branch  of  the  nursing  profession.  Such,  we  heartily 
acknowledge,  render  very  important  and  useful  service, 


156 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


and  no  want  of  appreciation  is  shown  for  their  help, 
wherever  it  may  find  a needed  sphere.  It  is,  however, 
most  advisable  that  by  the  title,  nurse  missionary, 
we  should  mean  one  definite  grade  of  worker,  and 
hence  the  restriction  that  has  been  indicated. 

Then  let  us  add  the  further  point  that  by  nurse 
missionaries  are  not  meant  those  who  are  qualified  to 
be  placed  in  charge  of  any  given  medical  mission. 
Some  harm,  we  fear,  has  been  done  in  the  past  by 
nurses  being  sent  out  with  the  loose  idea  that  they 
might  develop  a medical  work  in  the  districts  in  which 
they  are  stationed.  Placed  in  such  a position,  nurses 
have  been  called  upon  to  treat  very  serious  cases  wholly 
beyond  their  skill  and  outside  their  province,  with  the 
result  that  instead  of  furthering  the  cause  of  the  Mission 
they  have  imperilled  it.  Let  them,  of  course,  if  they 
happen  to  be  in  a place  where  there  is  no  doctor,  by 
all  means  attend  to  those  needs  and  conditions  of  the 
people  with  which  they  are  competent  to  deal,  doing 
all  the  good  they  possibly  can,  only  let  it  never  be 
that  the  role  of  a doctor  is  assumed.  And  instead  of 
it  being  at  all  the  practice  for  nurse  missionaries  to  be 
stationed  in  places  where  there  is  no  medical  missionary, 
this  should  rather  be  regarded  as  the  exception,  and  the 
rule  should  be  that  the  nurse  is  directly  associated 
with  the  work  of  a doctor.  In  such  a way  we  venture 
to  urge  there  will  be  secured  the  greatest  efficiency  and 
the  finest  results. 

Passing  next  to  the  particular  needs  which  claim 
the  help  of  nurse  missionaries,  we  find  our  attention 
directed  to  three  points. 

(a)  Nurse  missionaries  are  needed  to  undertake  the 
nursing  superintendence  of  mission  hospitals. — It  will 
appeal  to  all  that  the  medical  missionary  cannot,  by 
him  or  herself  alone,  effectively  manage  the  nursing 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


157 


work  of  a hospital,  in  addition  to  bearing  all  the  responsi- 
bility of  its  medical  and  surgical  work.  Neither  time 
nor  strength  admit  of  this,  nor  can  the  doctor  be  ex- 
pected to  so  ably  see  to  the  nursing  details  of  a hospital 
as  a nurse  who  has  been  specially  trained  for  that  work. 
Even,  however,  supposing  that  the  medical  missionary 
is  most  eminently  fitted  to  do  all  that  a nurse  missionary 
could  do,  it  is  by  no  means  the  most  economical  course 
that  his  or  her  time  should  be  so  taken  up.  Manifestly 
the  doctor  should  be  kept  free  for  all  the  multifarious 
claims  that  must  rest  upon  one  in  that  capacity,  and 
the  efficiency  of  the  whole  work  promoted  by  the 
assistance  of  a fully  qualified  nurse.  This  view  is  borne 
out  by  the  experience  of  medical  missionaries  all  over 
the  field,  and  increasingly  is  it  being  realised  that  nurse 
missionaries  have  a most  fruitful  sphere  in  undertaking 
responsibility  for  the  nursing  work  of  a mission  hospital. 
The  patients’  diet,  the  details  of  their  medical  and  surgical 
nursing,  their  preparation  for  surgical  operations  and  the 
after  care  of  such  cases,  the  general  nursing  manage- 
ment of  the  hospital,  etc.,  all  render  the  assistance  of  a 
nurse  missionary  an  invaluable  asset  to  any  mission 
hospital,  and  make  her  work  one  that  is  a magnificent 
second  to  that  of  the  doctor. 

(b)  Nurse  missionaries  are  needed  to  train  native 
Christian  girls  to  be  nurses. — Here  is  a most  obvious  and 
necessary  work,  and  one  for  which  the  help  of  a nurse 
missionary  is  of  first  importance.  The  work  of  nursing 
is  one  of  the  best  and  most  useful  vocations  into  which 
many  of  the  native  Christian  girls  can  enter,  and  naturally 
their  enlistment  in  that  service  is  just  what  should  be 
secured.  But  the  essential  preliminary  is  a thorough 
training,  and  to  attain  that  there  must  be  in  the  mission 
hospital  a fully  trained  European  nurse  who  can  put 
these  girl  probationers  through  a proper  nursing  course. 


158 


WOMEN’S  SPHERE 


Hence  the  need  and  scope  for  a nurse  missionary,  for 
the  work  of  which  calling  it  will  be  readily  appre- 
ciated nurse  candidates  cannot  equip  themselves  too 
thoroughly  on  the  professional  side.  In  addition  to 
having  a full  nursing  qualification,  they  should  obtain, 
wherever  practicable,  special  experience  in  the  nursing 
of  eye  cases  and  tropical  diseases,  and  should  obtain  an 
obstetrical  diploma.  The  value  of  a knowledge  of  simple 
midwifery  is  one  to  be  particularly  emphasised,  both  for 
the  sake  of  training,  and  from  all  other  points  of  view. 

By  devoting  herself  to  training  work,  the  nurse 
missionary  can  multiply  her  own  efforts  for  the  care 
of  the  suffering  sick.  She  can  mould  young  Christian 
girls  in  one  of  the  most  ideal  of  callings  for  them,  and 
establish  the  future  of  the  Medical  Mission  in  this 
respect  upon  a sound  and  enduring  basis.  Is  not  such 
a programme  enough  to  fire  the  ardour  of  possible 
nurse  candidates  here  at  home  ? 

(c)  Nurse  missionaries  are  needed  to  add  to  the  evangel- 
istic efficiency  of  the  hospital,  and  increase  its  spiritual 
success. — No  emphasis  is  too  heavy  to  lay  upon  this 
point.  The  need  is  very  clear,  and  to  none  more  than 
to  those  engaged  in  the  actual  work.  It  is  of  paramount 
importance,  if  the  spiritual  results  of  mission  hospitals 
are  to  be  what  they  might  be  that  there  should  be  a 
large  amount  of  individual  work  by  the  bedside.  Yet 
how  is  the  doctor  to  do  all  this  single-handed  ? How 
can  he  find  the  time,  to  speak  of  nothing  else  ? If, 
however,  what  he  can  do  is  supplemented  by  the  careful 
earnest  efforts  of  a nurse  missionary,  how  greatly  can 
the  efficiency  of  the  evangelistic  work  of  the  hospital 
be  increased.  If  the  nurse  gets  into  individual  touch 
'with  the  patients,  finds  out  their  spiritual  difficulties, 
and  skilfully,  by  the  help  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  puts  before 
them  the  plan  of  salvation,  in  how  many  more  instances 


IN  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


159 


may  not  the  hospital  become  a birthplace  of  souls, 
and  a place  of  spiritual  healing  ? 

All  this,  of  course,  naturally  involves  a special  course 
of  preparation  at  home  before  going  out,  and  no  nurse 
should  go  to  the  field  without  having  had  evangelistic 
training.  What  is  indicated  in  Chapter  IX.  in  regard 
to  this  aspect  of  the  training  of  a missionary  doctor 
should  be,  in  its  main  bearings,  hers  as  well.  Then, 
too,  how  much  her  co-operation  with  the  doctor  in  this 
work,  and  her  example,  may  fire  the  native  assistants 
and  nurses  with  a like  passion.  It  is  not  too  much  to 
say  that  to  the  nurse  missionary  there  are  spiritual 
opportunities  not  one  whit  less,  in  some  cases  even  more, 
than  those  falling  to  the  missionary  doctor.  And  it  is 
not  possible  to  appeal  too  strongly  for  consecrated  nurse 
candidates  who  will  give  themselves  to  God  for  this  work. 

We  are  led,  therefore,  to  the  conclusion  that  for  young 
Christian  girls  who  cannot  take  up  a medical  training, 
but  who  feel  the  call  of  Christ  to  the  service  of  Medical 
Missions,  there  is  open  in  missionary  nursing  a sphere 
of  labour  which  is  full  of  the  most  glorious  possibilities. 
There  are  large  stretches  of  the  great  Foreign  Field 
where  their  tender  skilful  womanly  ministry  is  all 
unknown.  There  are  overworked  doctors  fighting  a 
losing  battle  with  both  medical  and  spiritual  efficiency 
in  many  a mission  hospital,  simply  because  no  nurse 
missionaries  have  come  to  their  aid.  Veritable  gold 
mines  right  in  the  hearts  of  men  and  women  and 
children  are  scattered  throughout  the  non-Christian 
world,  which  they  may  explore,  and  win  back  treasure 
for  the  Kingdom  of  Christ.  Shall  it  ever  be  that  with 
such  potentialities  the  number  of  volunteers  for  this 
department  of  Medical  Missions  shall  be  only  a handful 
instead  of  a regiment  ? 


CHAPTER  IX 


THE  FAILURE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ We  might  be  able  to  do  a great  deal  of  good  in  advancing  the 
Gospel  with  inferior  medical  work,  but  wo  should  aim  at  nothing  less 
than  the  best  professional  results  possible  under  the  circumstances 
of  our  position.  The  best  work  secures  the  best  results.” 

It  is  not  unlikely  that  there  will  be  a good  deal  of 
astonishment  as  the  title  of  this  chapter  is  read.  So 
much  attention  has  been  drawn  on  previous  pages  to 
the  matchless  opportunities  and  triumphant  successes 
of  Medical  Missions  that  there  would  seem  to  be  no 
room  for  even  the  thought  of  failure.  And  yet  it  is 
just  the  very  sublimity  of  the  enterprise  and  the  insistent 
demand  that  it  makes  for  adequacy  and  efficiency 
that  constitute  its  elements  of  weakness  and  causes 
of  failure.  Not  that  Medical  Missions  are  failing  to 
achieve  in  large  measure  what  has  been  claimed  for 
them,  but  that  the  development  which  is  essential  to 
their  truest  success  is  being  so  curtailed,  so  cribbed, 
cabined  and  confined,  so  lacking  in  sufficient  support, 
that  instead  of  the  best  we  have  only  the  good,  and  in 
place  of  the  complete  we  have  only  the  partial. 

And  it  is  of  imperative  importance  that  due  and  in- 
stant recognition  be  taken  of  this  fact.  To  go  on,  as 
much  of  Medical  Mission  work  is  proceeding  to-day — 
faced  with  unrivalled  opportunities,  stimulated  with 
the  desire  to  attempt  the  impossible,  stretching  always 
and  ever  the  “ thin  red  line  ” until  there  is  never  a 


ICO 


FAILURE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  161 


second  to  fall  back  upon  for  reinforcements,  will  in- 
evitably yield  a harvest  of  failure,  and  water  down 
the  results  of  the  enterprise  until  they  are  hardly  worth 
the  having.  It  is  time,  high  time,  that  we  paused 
deliberately  to  consider  what  are  those  factors  in  the 
present  situation  which  are  sources  of  inefficiency, 
and  those  alterations  which  should  be  made  in  Medical 
Mission  procedure  so  as  to  turn  the  prognostications 
of  failure  into  the  heralds  of  success.  We  therefore 
invite  careful  attention  to  the  following  six  contributory 
causes  of  failure  in  the  life  history  of  Medical  Missions. 

1.  Insufficiency  of  the  medical  and  nursing  staff  at 
any  mission  hospital. — At  the  special  Medical  Conference 
held  at  Edinburgh  in  1910  in  connection  with  the  World 
Missionary  Conference,  the  following  resolution  was 
unanimously  adopted.: — 

“ That  Medical  Missions  should  be  continued  and 
extended  and  that  they  should  be  under  the  charge  of 
fully  qualified  medical  missionaries,  with  properly 
staffed  and  equipped  hospitals,  and,  where  possible, 
European  or  American  missionary  nurses,  to  supervise 
the  native  staff  of  nurses.” 

At  the  same  Conference  the  following  “ finding  ” of 
the  Medical  Missionary  Association  of  India,  was  pre- 
sented by  Dr  W.  T.  Wanless,  of  Miraj  : — 

“ That,  in  view  of  the  desirability  of  providing  for 
furlough  and  vacation  without  closing  hospitals  which 
have  once  been  established,  and  in  view,  also  of  the 
great  responsibility  entailed  by  serious  operations, 
the  necessity  of  having  two  fully  qualified  doctors  on 
the  regular  staff  of  each  Medical  Mission  station  should 
be  urged  upon  the  Home  Committees  and  Boards, 
especially  in  the  case  of  Women’s  Missions.” 

These  strong  and  influential  opinions,  which  medical 

L 


162 


THE  FAILURE 


missionaries  all  over  the  world  heartily  endorse,  reveal 
how  important  is  the  question  that  we  are  now  con- 
sidering. But  even  apart  from  such  “ findings  ” it  will, 
we  think,  be  apparent  to  all  students  of  the  subject 
that  an  insufficient  staff  must  spell  inefficiency. 

Think  for  a moment  of  the  kind  of  work  that  has  to 
be  carried  on  in  mission  hospitals.  Its  scope  includes 
not  just  a few  subsidiary  branches  of  medical  and 
surgical  science,  but  again  and  again  is  found  to  embrace 
cases  that  here  at  home  would  be  deemed  fit  patients 
for  a dozen  and  more  special  hospitals.  The  medical 
missionary  has  to  be  physician,  surgeon.,  and  specialist 
all  at  the  same  time,  and  has,  in  addition,  to  cope  with 
the  yet  unworked  out  science  of  many  a perplexing 
tropical  disease.  He  has  to  perform  many  a grave 
surgical  operation,  and  to  treat  affections,  in  which  the 
utmost  professional  skill  is  required.  Moreover,  an 
ever  present  consideration  is  the  fact  that  mistakes, 
if  they  are  committed,  mean  very  frequently  far  more 
than  they  do  at  home.  Here  they  are  understood  and 
occasion,  except  in  rare  instances,  no  weakening  of 
confidence.  There  the  failure  to  achieve  what  was 
hoped  for  by  an  operation,  or  some  error  of  judgment 
very  difficult  to  prevent,  may  exert  a most  adverse 
influence  upon  the  work  of  the  mission.  It  is  therefore 
of  supreme  importance  that  the  work  of  a hospital 
should  be  as  free  as  possible  from  avoidable  failures  in 
treatment. 

Now  all  this  means  that  there  is  a big  strain  continually 
resting  upon  the  medical  missionary  in  charge  of  a 
hospital,  and  that  there  is  a clear  call  for  him  or  her 
not  to  be  without  a medical  colleague  whose  aid  can 
be  quickly  obtained.  Two  doctors  should  certainly 
be  deemed  essential,  and  very  frequently  a nurse,  if 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


1G3 


there  is  to  be  a proper  safeguard  placed  against  both 
the  occurrence  of  failures  in  practice  and  an  overwrought 
and  broken  down  state  on  the  part  of  the  one  doctor 
left  in  charge.  It  may,  of  course,  be  perfectly  legitimate, 
and  indeed  the  only  possible  course  for  but  one  doctor 
to  be  in  charge  of  a Medical  Mission  centre  during  its 
initial  stage,  but  once  let  that  period  be  passed,  and 
the  red  light  of  the  danger  signal  shines  in  front,  should 
there  be  any  delay  in  adding  the  second  doctor,  and, 
especially  in  the  case  of  women’s  hospitals,  a trained 
nurse. 

Furthermore,  there  are  yet  two  additional  considera- 
tions which  plainly  point  out  the  seriousness  of  an 
insufficient  staff.  The  first  of  these  is  the  necessity 
of  providing  for  the  hospital  during  the  period  of  absence 
caused  by  itinerating  tours.  Obviously  unless  there  be 
a second  doctor  who  can  remain  in  charge,  either  the 
hospital  must  be  left  without  a doctor,  or  the  itinerating 
tours,  useful  as  they  are,  must  be  given  up.  We  are 
aware  that  trained  native  assistants  have  rendered, 
and  can  render  great  service  under  such  circumstances. 
Not  for  a moment  would  we  overlook  their  valued  help. 
But  it  must  be  remembered  that  as  yet  these  native 
helpers  are  not,  as  a general  rule,  of  such  a sufficiently 
advanced  grade  as  to  be  able  easily  to  assume  responsible 
control  of  a hospital  for  any  considerable  length  of  time, 
without  the  presence  of  a European  medical  missionary. 
The  day  will  come,  and  every  friend  of  the  work  will 
hail  its  advent,  when  fully  qualified  native  colleagues 
will  be  able  to  effectively  take  over  the  work  of  mission 
hospitals,  but  for  the  present  it  would  be  premature 
to  argue  that  because  of  the  presence  of  native  assistants, 
two  doctors  are  not  a necessity  at  these  institutions. 

Then  there  is  the  second  consideration,  that  of 


164 


THE  FAILURE 


furlough  exigencies.  Who  has  not  read  in  the  records 
of  societies  again  and  again  that  because  of  the  absence 
of  the  medical  missionary  on  furlough,  such  and  such 
a hospital  had  to  be  closed.  Work  that  was  far-reaching 
in  its  influence,  and  from  every  point  of  view  most 
necessary,  absolutely  stopped,  and  to  that  extent  its 
power  lost,  all  because  no  second  doctor  was  at  hand 
to  step  into  the  breach  when  the  first  went  on  furlough. 
The  pathos  of  such  a situation  is  closely  bordering  on 
tragedy.  Who  can  think  of  it  unmoved  ? Can  there 
be  the  smallest  doubt  that  the  only  way  to  prevent 
a great  leakage  of  influence  is  to  staff  our  mission 
hospitals  sufficiently  strongly  that  when  one  doctor 
leaves,  another  takes  his  place  ? 

2.  Inadequacy  of  medical  plant. — We  now  touch  one 
of  the  most  fruitful  causes  occasioning  the  set  back 
of  many  a promising  Medical  Mission  centre.  And  it  is 
certainly  one  of  the  most  disappointing.  For  if  a 
medical  missionary,  fully  trained  and  eager  to  accomplish 
the  best  work,  has  been  accepted  and  sent  out,  what 
could  be  more  calculated  to  nullify  his  efforts  and  limit 
his  possibilities  than  to  utterly  fail  to  provide  that 
degree  of  equipment  which  is  essential  for  efficient 
medical  work  ? 

We  do  not,  of  course,  refer  here  to  what  may  be 
described  as  purely  optional,  or  to  any  of  the  refinements 
of  modern  therapeutic  science,  however  useful  and 
legitimate  such  may  be,  but  simply  to  those  items 
in  the  equipment  of  a Medical  Mission  which  are 
indispensable  to  success.  For  example,  can  there  be 
any  question  as  to  the  necessity  for  an  adequate  supply 
of  drugs  and  instruments  ? Yet  there  have  been, 
and  there  may  be  still,  medical  missionaries  who  have 
actually  had  to  wait  in  vain  for  these  things.  Or  again, 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


165 


is  it  possible  to  entertain  the  smallest  doubt  as  to  the 
call  for  a hospital  into  which  patients  can  be  taken, 
and  surgical  work  undertaken  with  sufficient  regard  to 
necessary  precautions  ? Yet  how  many  medical  mis- 
sionaries to-day  are  devoid  of  a hospital  unless  it  be 
some  feeble  makeshift  of  one  which  the  doctor  may 
have  tried  to  make  out  of  unsuitable  native  dwellings. 
The  day  may  have  passed  when  the  popular  conception 
of  a medical  missionary  was  a man  who  went  out  with 
a box  of  pills  and  ointment  in  his  bag,  but  it  is  to  be 
feared  that  there  is  still  a very  inadequate  idea  as  to 
the  essential  equipment  that  he  requires.  To  remove 
that  view  and  implant  the  correct  one  should  be  there- 
for the  constant  aim  of  those  who  wish  to  hasten  the 
success  and  prevent  the  failure  of  Medical  Missions. 

3.  'Wastage  of  evangelistic  opportunities. — The  primary 
aim  of  all  medical  missionary  enterprise,  as  we  have 
been  already  reminded,  is  to  further  the  spread  of  the 
Gospel.  For  that  great  end  this  branch  of  Christian 
missions  acknowledges  its  dominant  raison  d'etre.  It 
therefore  follows  that  if  there  is  any  leakage  of  spiritual 
results,  any  neglect  in  seizing  and  following  up  the 
unique  advantages  that  Medical  Missions  present  for 
bringing  home  to  the  hearts  of  men  and  women  the 
truth  of  the  Gospel,  just  in  so  far  is  there  the  sign  of 
failure  written  across  the  work.  Here,  if  anywhere, 
must  Medical  Missions  be  subjected  to  the  most  search- 
ing scrutiny. 

Now,  when  thus  we  look  into  the  day  by  day  experi- 
ence of  medical  stations,  we  find  that  there  is  considerable 
ground  for  disquietude  on  this  score.  Our  medical 
missionaries  are  toiling  with  unremitting  ardour.  They 
are  winning  opportunity  after  opportunity  for  evangel- 
ising the  people.  But,  alas  that  we  have  to  say  it, 


166 


THE  FAILURE 


these  very  openings,  through  sheer  lack  of  time,  and 
because  of  the  fewness  of  the  labourers  and  the  great- 
ness of  the  task,  are  at  the  best  only  being  utilised 
at  a fraction  of  their  possible  value. 

Let  us  quote  from  a most  important  pamphlet,  entitled 
“ Where  Medical  Missions  fail,”  which  was  written  by 
Dr  Harold  Balme,  of  China,  a few  years  ago.  Alluding 
to  the  point  we  have  just  touched  upon,  he  writes  : — 

“ This  is  no  fancy  picture.  During  the  past  year 
I have  had  an  opportunity  of  visiting  fourteen  Medical 
Missions,  and  of  conversing  with  representatives  of  three 
or  four  others,  and  it  has  been  only  too  obvious  how  real 
a danger  this  is  everywhere.  In  many  cases  the  doctor 
finds  his  time  wholly  taken  up  with  the  hundred  and 
one  details  which  crowd  into  each  day’s  work  (his  native 
helpers  often  enough  being  too  few  or  too  slack  to 
render  very  efficient  help),  so  that  the  result  is  that 
with  the  exception  of  an  occasional,  and  possibly  more 
or  less  perfunctory  service,  the  new  patient,  whose 
friendliness  and  confidence  have  already  been  won  by 
the  medical  skill  and  kindness  received  in  the  wards, 
never  gets  into  real  touch  with  that  ‘ Jesus  ’ whose 
name  the  hospital  bears,  and  so  far  from  receiving 
the  revelation  of  God’s  love  into  his  heart,  he  goes 
back  to  his  home  but  little  better  than  when  he  came. 
And  yet  all  that  time,  there  has  been  daily  in  the  wards 
one  of  the  finest  congregations  which  a missionary 
could  ever  hope  for — men  from  all  parts  of  the  country, 
and  new  to  the  Gospel ; men  with  plenty  of  leisure 
to  listen,  and  free  from  distraction  ; and  lastly,  and 
best  of  all,  men  who  have  already  begun  to  respond 
in  some  little  way  to  the  kindness  they  have  been 
receiving.  And  the  precious  opportunity  passes  because 
there  is  no  one  to  take  advantage  of  it. 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


1G7 


Proceeding  further,  Dr  Balme  discusses  the  question 
as  it  affects  the  villages  and  writes  : — 

“ Again,  let  us  take  the  case  of  our  own  hospital. 
In  the  course  of  a year  our  beds  are  occupied  by  scores 
of  men  who  have  never  before  heard  the  message  of 
salvation.  They  come  to  us,  many  of  them,  from  places 
far  distant,  drawn  by  the  simple  fact  that  some  relative 
or  friend,  or  somebody  in  the  neighbouring  village, 
has  been  cured  at  the  hospital,  and  in  this  way  they  too 
get  emboldened  to  try  the  risky  experiment.  Thus  it 
comes  to  pass  that  many  of  them,  on  arriving,  are 
as  strange  to  us  and  our  doings  as  they  are  to  the  Gospel 
we  preach.  But  a few  days’  residence  in  the  wards, 
and  the  strangeness  wears  off,  and  as,  by  God’s  blessing, 
their  bodily  condition  begins  to  improve,  their  minds 
and  hearts  begin  to  open  to  that  message  which  is  daily 
unfolded  to  them  ; and,  in  many  instances,  when  the 
day  comes  for  them  to  leave  the  hospital,  they  not 
only  have  become  our  friends,  but  have  also  begun  to 
take  a real  interest  in  the  old,  old  story. 

“ So  far,  so  good — but  what  then  ? In  our  own 
case  we  have  at  present  sorrowfully  to  admit  that  the 
great  proportion  then  go  entirely  out  of  the  sphere 
of  missionary  influence.  They  return  to  villages  where 
no  mission  work  exists,  and  in  the  present  state  of  our 
work  we  are  quite  unable  to  follow  up  what  has  been 
begun. 

“ What  does  this  really  signify  ? Surely  if  it  means 
anything  at  all  it  means  just  this — that  the  unique 
advantages  which  are  thus  being  won  by  the  hospital, 
at  the  cost  of  so  much  money  and  time  and  strength, 
are  being  dropped  just  as  they  are  in  one’s  grasp,  and 
that  whereas  our  Medical  Mission  work  is  being  blessed 
by  God  to  open  up  village  after  village,  the  doors  thus 


168 


THE  FAILURE 


opened  are  allowed  to  creak  slowly  back  upon  their 
hinges  for  want  of  anyone  to  enter.” 

Now,  it  is  impossible  for  anyone  to  read  these  words 
without  feeling  how  serious  is  this  wastage  of  evangelistic 
opportunities.  We  are  faced  here  with  a matter  which 
cuts  at  the  very  root  of  the  spiritual  efficiency  of  Medical 
Missions.  And  unless  there  can  be  found  and  adopted 
some  means  of  checking  the  leakage,  it  will  be  idle  for 
us  to  go  on  speaking  of  Medical  Missions  as  a great 
evangelistic  success.  Obviously  there  is  abundant 
need  for  the  most  earnest  prayer  and  deliberate  thinking 
concerning  this  aspect  of  our  subject. 

In  the  pamphlet  by  Dr  Balme,  from  which  we  have 
already  quoted,  he  gives  two  suggestions  for  solving 
the  problem.  The  first  is  the  obvious  one  to  so  “ staff 
the  hospitals  as  to  enable  each  medical  missionary 
to  spend  a fair  proportion  of  his  day  in  direct  personal 
evangelistic  work  in  the  wards,  and  also  to  allow  of 
one  doctor  being  set  free,  every  now  and  again,  to  make 
itinerating  journeys  into  the  country  district,  partly 
with  the  object  of  doing  medical  evangelistic  work, 
but  more  especially  for  the  purpose  of  looking  up  old 
patients  and  continuing  the  teaching  which  has  been 
started  in  the  wards.” 

The  second  suggestion  is  that  every  mission  hospital 
should  have  added  to  its  staff  one  non-medical  mission- 
ary, whose  whole  time  should  be  devoted  to  evangelistic 
work  amongst  the  patients,  both  while  they  are  in  the 
hospital,  and  afterwards  when  they  have  returned  to 
their  homes. 

The  appropriate  and  apposite  character  of  both  these 
suggestions  will  appeal  to  all.  They  include  within 
themselves  the  most  cogent  remedies  for  the  failure 
we  are  now  considering.  Needless  to  say,  if  there  were 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


169 


enough  medical  missionaries  available,  the  first  sugges- 
tion is  the  best  line  to  adopt,  and  it  should  in  any  case 
represent  the  definite  aim  of  every  Medical  Mission 
Committee.  But  in  view  of  the  all  too  inadequate 
number  of  men  and  women  medicals  now  coming 
forward  for  this  work,  it  would  seem  most  emphatically 
that  there  is  very  ample  room  for  Dr  Balme’s  second 
suggestion.  Such  a non-medical  missionary  would  find 
abundant  scope  for  his  time  and  energy.  He  would 
reach  a wonderfully  prepared  set  of  people,  and  his 
work  would  enhance,  in  a very  clear  and  definite  way, 
the  spiritual  efficiency  of  the  hospital.  We  believe 
already  that  the  suggestion  has  been  put  in  force  in 
the  experience  of  some  Medical  Missions,  and  has  proved 
its  value.  As  an  instance  of  this  may  be  cited,  a case 
mentioned  by  Dr  Balrne,  of  a Wesleyan  Missionary 
who  was  attached  to  a station  in  India,  where  his  sister 
was  a lady  medical  missionary.  By  following  up  her 
old  patients  he  had  in  seventeen  years  obtained  an 
entrance  to  100  villages,  and  baptised  upwards  of 
3000  people.  Why  might  not  the  results  of  many 
other  Medical  Missions  be  multiplied  in  a similar 
way  ? 

4.  Opening  too  many  medical  stations. — It  may  be  diffi- 
cult at  first  to  see  why  this  should  be  reckoned  amongst 
the  causes  of  failure  in  Medical  Missions.  After  all 
that  has  been  said  as  to  the  need  for  medical  missionaries, 
how  can  there  be  “ too  many  ” medical  stations  ? And 
yet  it  is  true,  only  too  easily,  that  the  multiplying  of 
medical  centres  introduces  a positive  weakness  into 
the  work  instead  of  a blessing.  The  line  is  thinned  out 
until  at  no  point  is  its  effectiveness  what  it  should  be. 
Important  base  hospitals  are  depleted  to  open  advance 
outposts,  with  the  result  that  the  efficiency  of  the  former 


170 


THE  FAILURE 


is  imperilled,  and  the  work  of  the  latter  insufficiently 
supported,  and  liable  at  any  moment  to  complete  arrest. 
True,  we  cannot  remain  just  where  we  started  and 
never  advance,  nor  can  there  always  be  the  avoidance 
of  times  of  strain  when  new  medical  stations  are  com- 
menced, but  it  is  surely  of  the  greatest  importance 
that  there  should  not  be  the  opening  up  of  such  a number 
of  separate  Medical  Missions  as  must  necessarily  involve 
the  unhappy  results  above  mentioned.  May  it  not 
be  serving  the  cause  best  to  maintain  only  that  chain 
of  stations  which  can  be  effectively  sustained  ? 

In  this  connection  we  would  draw  attention  to  the 
immense  importance  of  exercising  the  utmost  discrimina- 
tion in  selecting  hospital  centres.  Too  often,  it  is  to  be 
feared,  mission  hospitals  have  been  established  in  places 
which,  whilst  no  doubt  presenting  distinct  need,  are 
not  those  from  which  large  populations  can  be  reached. 
The  consequences  are  two-fold.  Firstly,  these  hospitals 
and  those  in  charge  of  them  are  denied  that  scope 
for  which  they  have  potentiality : they  are  limited 
in  their  range  of  opportunity.  Secondly,  the  existence 
of  hospitals  in  such  places  often  prejudices  the  estab- 
lishment of  hospitals  in  other  centres  where  the  degree 
of  utility  attained  would  be  so  much  greater.  Not  for 
a moment  would  we  wish  to  decry  any  really  needy 
mission  station  having  a hospital.  On  the  contrary 
we  would  hail  the  day  when  mission  hospitals  should 
be  established  in  every  part  of  the  field.  But,  bearing 
in  mind  the  present  limitation  of  mission  resources, 
and  having  regard  to  the  immensity  of  the  area  yet 
unoccupied  by  mission  hospitals,  teeming  as  it  does 
with  unique  opportunities  for  their  peculiar  service, 
it  would  seem  to  us  the  highest  wisdom  and  truest 
success  to  plant  these  valuable  and  costly  institutions 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


171 


in  those  centres  only  where  their  amplest  possibilities 
for  accomplishing  the  end  in  view  can  be  utilised  to 
the  full. 

5.  Designating  new  medical  missionaries  to  responsible 
medical  positions  before  their  probationary  period  has 
been  passed. — Scarcely  is  there  anything  more  calculated 
to  injuriously  affect  the  entire  career  of  a medical 
missionary,  than  the  step  of  sending  the  new  doctor 
to  stations  where  he  or  she  will  be  the  only  doctor, 
or  placing  the  probationer  in  positions  where  medical 
work  will  press  heavily  before  the  language  examina- 
tions have  been  satisfactorily  passed.  It  has  been  the 
reproach  sometimes  cast  against  Medical  Missions 
that  so  few  of  the  doctors  are  good  linguists,  but  how 
much  of  this  has  not  been  occasioned  by  the  practice 
of  sending  new  medical  missionaries  right  into  positions 
where  they  have  had  to  undertake  a large  amount  of 
medical  work  before  their  study  of  the  language  was 
surmounted  ? It  is  the  peculiarity  of  Medical  Missions 
that  its  workers  can  undertake  their  work,  and  are 
often  pressed  to  do  so,  by  requests  which  they  cannot 
withstand  when  they  are  alone,  before  they  have  been 
in  the  country  many  days  ! Therein  they  differ  from 
their  evangelistic  or  educational  colleagues.  How 
important,  therefore,  that  they  should  not  be  put 
into  places  where  this  fatal  ability,  to  instantly  engage 
in  work,  becomes  a curse  and  not  a blessing,  when  viewed 
from  the  standpoint  of  their  life  work  as  missionaries. 
Can  it  be  questioned  that  the  medical  missionary’s 
period  of  probation  on  the  field  should  be  concentrated 
upon  two  main  things  : (1)  getting  to  know  the  people 
and  their  customs,  (2)  acquiring  the  language  ? 

We  do  not,  of  course,  mean  by  this  that  the  new 
doctor  should  never  see  or  assist  in  any  medical  work. 


172 


THE  FAILURE 


It  is  obvious  that  a course  like  that  would  tend  to  his 
or  her  becoming  seriously  “ rusty  ” ; moreover,  by 
mixing  with  dispensary  and  hospital  patients,  the  doctor 
will  be  greatly  helped  in  obtaining  the  language.  But 
this  is  naturally  quite  different  to  the  medical  missionary 
having  to  assume  charge  of  any  medical  work,  and 
thereby  quickly  becoming  submerged  under  its  claims. 

Clearly  the  logical  and  correct  plan  is  to  place  the 
young  medical  missionary  where  there  is  at  least  one 
other  senior  doctor,  whose  work  he  can  watch,  without 
at  the  same  time  finding  his  language  study  pushed 
into  the  background.  May  the  day  soon  come  when 
no  medical  probationer  will  have  his  early  days  on 
the  field  spent  in  a different  manner ! So  will  the 
efficiency  of  the  whole  work  be  promoted,  and  a cause 
of  failure  removed. 

6.  Sending  out  new  medical  missionaries  without  a 
sufficient  amount  of  post-graduate  work. — This  point, 
like  the  last,  is  of  primary  importance  as  touching  the 
personal  equation  in  the  work.  And  it  is  one  which 
is  all  too  apt  to  be  lost  sight  of  by  “ lay  ” committees 
and  those  not  connnected  with  medical  science.  The 
appeals  from  the  field  are  so  urgent,  the  paucity  of 
workers  is  so  great,  that  the  temptation  to  urge  the  going 
out  of  medical  candidates  as  soon  as  they  are  qualified 
becomes  well  nigh  irresistible.  But  it  must  be  resisted, 
and  with  stedfastness,  or  a grave  injury  will  be  done 
to  both  the  workers  and  the  cause. 

For  let  it  be  remembered  that  the  recently  “ qualified  ” 
medical,  as  every  one  in  the  profession  knows,  is  but 
a “ tyro  ” in  medical  practice.  He  may  possess  an 
almost  encyclopa3dic  knowledge  of  medical  text-books, 
and  be  able  to  produce  a faultless  record  of  his  student 
career,  but  he  is,  at  the  best,  oidy  a “ ’prentice  hand.” 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


173 


He  has  indeed  merely  come  to  the  point  when  the 
school  of  theory  has  to  be  exchanged  for  the  school 
of  experience.  And  if  his  beginnings  in  that  latter 
school  have  to  be  worked  out  far  from  masters, 
who  are  themselves  but  senior  students  in  the  same 
school,  and  under  circumstances  where  he  is  thrown 
upon  his  own  resources,  and  has  at  the  same  time  to 
acquire  a new  language,  how  tremendously  increased 
are  his  difficulties,  and  how  great  is  the  risk  that  the 
new  medical  missionary  will  suffer  a heavy  disadvantage 
in  his  professional  work  from  then  right  onwards. 

Furthermore,  it  is  important  that  due  recognition 
should  be  given  to  the  fact  which  already  has  been 
emphasised,  viz.,  that  the  medical  missionary  needs 
to  be  a specialist  rather  than  a general  practitioner. 
He  has  to  be  prepared  to  meet  and  treat  grave  medical 
and  surgical  affections,  which  will  test  his  professional 
acumen  to  the  full.  He  has  to  put  up  his  door-plate, 
so  to  speak,  where  there  is  no  “ Harley  Street  ” to 
call  in,  and  where  great  issues,  missionary  as  well  as 
medical,  may  sometimes  hang  upon  his  practice.  Is 
it  possible  therefore,  to  question  for  one  moment  the 
vital  importance  of  a sufficiency  of  post-graduate 
work  ere  the  young  medical  missionary  sails  for  the 
field? 

It  will  be  our  object  in  a subsequent  chapter  to 
discuss  the  kind  of  post-graduate  work  that  should  be 
carried  through,  and  we  therefore  content  ourselves 
here  by  saying  that  above  all  it  should  be  practical, 
and  cover  a period  of  at  least  eighteen  months,  its 
great  aim  being  to  develop  self-reliance  of  the  right 
sort.  With  great  earnestness  would  we  venture  to 
urge  attention  to  this  matter.  It  bears  a most  essential 
relationship  to  the  success  of  Medical  Missions,  and  if 


174  FAILURE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


neglected  or  slurred  over,  may  be  one  of  the  most  prolific 
causes  of  failure  in  the  enterprise. 

We  have  thus  enumerated  some  of  the  main  factors 
that  go  to  lessen  the  value  and  undermine  the  utility 
of  Medical  Missions.  They  are  not  all  that  might  be 
mentioned,  but  they  will  sufficiently  indicate  how 
necessary  it  is  that  thoroughness  and  efficiency  should 
characterise  every  aspect  of  the  work.  Apart  from  these 
qualities,  Medical  Missions,  we  say  it  advisedly,  will  not 
pay.  Of  all  forms  of  missionary  activity,  they  supremely 
require  to  be  done  well.  Moreover,  there  is  this  con- 
sideration, which  surely  ought  to  carry  with  it  the 
most  solemn  right.  Medical  Missions  own  their  descent 
and  authority  from  our  Lord  Himself.  His  is  the 
sacred  Person  who  constitutes  their  lofty  Ideal.  His 
is  the  name  in  whom  their  service  is  rendered.  And 
He  gave  that  which  was  His  best.  He  spared  no 
pains  to  accomplish  His  blessed  work.  Should  His 
followers  do  less  ? 


CHAPTER  X 


THE  TRAINING  OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 

“ Tho  first  then,  and  incomparably  the  most  important  qualification 
for  Medical  Missionary  Service  is  love ; love  that  can  be  felt,  that 
practises  as  well  as  preaches.” — Dr  F.  Howard  Taylor,  of  China. 

The  subject  which  is  to  claim  our  consideration  in 
this  chapter  is  one  whose  significance  it  is  impos- 
sible to  overstate  or  to  estimate  too  highly.  The 
preparation  of  the  individual  worker,  who  enters  upon 
the  service  of  Medical  Missions,  manifestly  touches 
the  whole  of  the  enterprise.  It  bears  a vital  relation 
to  the  success  or  failure  of  the  cause,  and  demands 
the  most  careful  thinking  that  can  be  given  to  it. 
If  there  is  defect  here  by  so  much  is  the  entire  woik 
weakened.  Equally  on  the  other  hand  if  the  training 
of  a Medical  Missionary  is  what  it  should  be,  the  gain 
resulting  tends  to  the  advance  of  the  whole  work. 

How  important  this  is,  may  be  gathered  from  the 
way  in  which  the  question  of  training  occupied  a fore- 
most place  in  the  deliberations  of  the  Medical  Missionary 
Conference  at  Edinburgh  in  1910.  At  the  first  session 
of  this  important  gathering,  the  following  findings 
were  unanimously  adopted  and  sent  to  the  Fifth  Com- 
mission of  the  World  Missionary  Conference,  who  subse- 
quently annexed  them  to  their  Report : — 

“1.  That  the  Medical  Missionary  should  be  in  definite 
charge  of  the  spiritual  work  of  the  Medical  Mission, 
and  that  this  meeting  heartily  endorses  the  recom- 

175 


176 


THE  TRAINING 


mendations  in  the  Report  on  Commission  V.  in  regard 
to  the  spiritual  preparation  for  such  work. 

“ 2,  That  the  professional  preparation  of  Medical 
Missionaries  should  be  as  thorough  as  possible,  and 
that  no  one  who  has  not  passed  through  the  complete 
medical  curriculum  and  obtained  a diploma  or  degree 
in  medicine  from  a recognised  examining  body  should 
assume  the  title  of  Medical  Missionary. 

“3.  That  seeing  it  is  impossible  for  each  denomination 
to  have  a Medical  Missionary  training  institution  of 
itself,  such  interdenominational  institutions  as  exist, 
namely,  taking  them  in  their  chronological  order  of 
foundation — 

(1)  The  Edinburgh  Medical  Missionary  Society  in 
Edinburgh ; 

(2)  The  London  Medical  Missionary  Association  in 
London ; 

(3)  The  American  Medical  Missionary  College  at 

Battle  Creek,  Michigan  ; 

(4)  St  Luke’s  College  (Guild  of  St  Luke),  London  ; and 

(5)  The  Medical  Missionary  Institute  for  Germany 
and  Switzerland  at  Tubingen,  Germany — 

should  be  encouraged  in  their  work,  and  warmly  com- 
mended to  the  sympathy  and  prayer  of  all  interested  in 
Medical  Missions. 

“ 4.  That  every  Medical  Missionary  should,  before 
proceeding  to  the  foreign  field,  have  held,  where  possible, 
a resident  post  at  a recognised  hospital,  and  post- 
graduate study  in  special  departments,  and  in  particular 
eye  and  tropical  diseases.” 

These  recommendations  cover  a wide  ground  and 
reveal  the  strong  feeling  as  to  the  preparation  of  Medical 
Missionaries  which  found  voice  at  this  Conference. 
Taken  with  the  important  section  of  the  Report  of  the 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


177 


above  Commission,  dealing  with  the  same  matter,  we 
have  some  of  the  ripest  and  soundest  lines  of  guidance 
that  can  be  offered  in  this  connection.  It  will  be  our 
object  in  this  chapter  to  discuss  the  subject  under  the 
two  headings,  Professional  and  Missionary  ; but  before 
proceeding  to  do  so  it  may  be  well  if  we  recall  to  our 
minds  four  essential  points. 

First  of  all,  let  us  remember  that  the  Medical  Mission- 
ary is  a member  of  the  general  missionary  body.  He 
is,  it  is  true,  a specialist  in  the  ranks  of  missions,  but 
he  is  none  the  less  a bond  fide  representative  of  that 
noble  army  of  workers  whose  primary  and  eternal 
purpose  is  the  spread  of  the  Gospel.  Because  it  so 
happens  that  his  particular  work  necessitates  large  dif- 
ferentiation in  both  his  preparation  and  actual  service, 
there  is  no  reason,  rather  the  reverse,  for  viewing  him 
in  any  other  light  than  that  of  a missionary.  The 
missionary  enterprise  is  not  a series  of  disconnected 
units,  it  is  one  organic  whole  and  has  one  predominant 
aim  throbbing  through  every  part.  That  aim  is  to 
obey  the  Saviour’s  last  command  and  carry  the  message 
of  His  redeeming  love  to  all  mankind.  And  whatever 
prefix  the  missionary  may  have  attached  to  his  name, 
such  a word  is  not,  nor  must  ever  be,  more  than  an 
adjective  of  distinction. 

Then  in  the  second  place  it  is  necessary  to  keep 
the  fact  well  in  mind  that  the  Medical  Missionary  is 
a missionary  entrusted  with  a twofold  piece  of  worlc. 
The  aim  may  be,  as  we  have  already  seen,  one  and 
indivisible,  but  the  contribution  that  the  Medical 
Missionary  makes  towards  the  accomplishment  of  that 
end  runs  along  two  perfectly  distinct  yet  inseparably 
connected  paths  of  service.  As  was  defined  at  the 
London  Conference  on  Medical  Missions,  which  met 

M 


178 


THE  TRAINING 


in  1884,  “ a Medical  Missionary  is  a legally  qualified 
Medical  Practitioner  called  of  God  and  set  apart  for 
the  twofold  work  of  preaching  the  Gospel  and  healing 
the  Sick.”  That  is  to  say,  neither  of  those  capacities 
taken  separately  makes  him  a Medical  Missionary, 
nor  if  they  fail  to  exhibit  between  each  other  the  closest 
harmony  and  collusion,  can  he  assume  that  title.  The 
very  essence  of  the  true  conception  of  a Medical  Mission- 
ary lies  in  this  blending  of  two  vocations  into  one  two- 
sided  ministry.  Therein,  as  we  saw  in  an  earlier  chapter, 
lies  the  very  genius  of  Medical  Missions,  and  it  is  of 
first  importance  that  the  stamp  of  this  ideal  should 
be  impressed  upon  the  Medical  Missionary  from  the 
earliest  days  of  his  preparation. 

In  addition  to  these  two  essential  preliminary  con- 
siderations there  is  yet  another  of  whose  relevancy 
there  can  be  no  question  ; we  refer  to  the  necessity 
of  the  Medical  Missionary  being  one  who  is  not  lack- 
ing in  general  educational  culture.  Everything  points 
to  the  significance  of  this  element  in  his  fitness  for 
service.  The  prolonged  and  arduous  professional 
training,  the  peculiarly  exacting  nature  of  the  subsequent 
life  work,  the  insistency  with  which  it  claims  the  best 
of  brain  and  heart,  all  indicate  how  imperative  it  is 
that  the  Medical  Missionary  should  be  one  who  possesses 
a wide  mental  horizon,  and  whose  capabilities  are  not 
meagre.  No  wealth  of  professional  talent  can  adequately 
compensate  for  deficiency  here.  The  life  and  work  of  a 
Medical  Missionary  is  not  a vocation  whose  educational 
preparedness  is  measured  by  the  number  of  medical  de- 
grees that  may  have  been  obtained.  Behind  all  that,  there 
is  an  elemental  need  for  a brain  enriched  and  disciplined 
by  a store  of  sound  learning  and  general  knowledge  in 
which  languages  and  science  should  have  a liberal  share. 


179 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 

And  then  there  is  finally  one  further  matter  which 
requires  careful  consideration,  and  that  is,  the  immense 
necessity  for  the  Medical  Missionary  to  be  one  U'hose 
physique  and  capacity  for  physical  endurance  are  beyond 
reproach.  He  will  have  claims  made  upon  his  stock 
of  bodily  stamina  and  vital  energy  which  will  try  the 
strongest.  His  duties  will  call  not  infrequently  for  a 
lavish  expenditure  of  physical  powers  and  demand  such 
a concentration  upon  exhausting  work,  as  is  bound  to 
mean  a serious  drain.  If  he  starts  well,  if  he  commences 
with  a goodsupply  of  constitutional  vigour  and  wisely 
develops  and  conserves  it,  then  the  tasks  which  increas- 
ingly will  fall  to  his  lot  will  stand  a high  chance  of  being 
discharged  satisfactorily.  With  a different  constitution 
the  case  is  often  far  other,  and  it  is  therefore  of  cardinal 
importance  that  physical  robustness  enters  largely  into 
the  make-up  of  the  prospective  Medical  Missionary. 

Keeping  in  mind  these  points  let  us  now  revise  the 
main  aspects  of  the  two  divisions  of  his  training. 

I.  The  Professional  Training 

This  may  be  considered  under  four  sub-headings : 
(1)  Pre-Graduate  ; (2)  Post-Graduate  ; (3)  Probationary  ; 
(4)  Furlough. 

(1)  Pre-Graduate. — There  is  no  need  to  refer  to  this 
at  any  length  for  the  obvious  reason  that  the  training 
before  qualification  is  in  no  way  different  to  that  required 
of  any  student  of  medicine.  The  same  time  has  to  be 
spent,  the  same  classes  taken,  and  the  same  examinations 
passed.  The  Medical  Missionary  student  must  “ walk 
the  hospitals  ” just  as  any  other  medical  student,  and 
hold  exactly  the  same  appointments,  e.g.  surgical 
dresser,  as  is  demanded  from  the  one  whose  intention 
it  is  to  practice  in  his  own  land.  The  only  difference 


180 


THE  TRAINING 


lies  in  the  fact  that,  whereas  the  last-named  will  probably 
never  be  far  outside  the  reach  of  whatever  skilled  help 
he  needs  in  the  course  of  his  practice,  the  prospective 
Medical  Missionary  has  to  face  a sphere  of  service  in 
which  he  may  have  to  depend  wholly,  or  nearly  so, 
upon  his  own  resources.  Consequently  if  in  any  way 
the  work  done  by  the  two  classes  of  students  is  to  differ, 
then  it  should  rather  be  in  the  direction  of  increased 
thoroughness  on  the  part  of  the  one  who  is  to  go  abroad. 

As  to  the  question — Which  of  the  possible  medical 
qualifications  should  the  Medical  Missionary  student 
work  for  ? — we  would  unhesitatingly  advise  that  which 
confers  a university  degree.  Not  that  the  diplomas  of 
other  examining  bodies  are  in  any  way  to  be  regarded 
with  disfavour,  but  rather  that  with  the  spread  of 
modern  education  upon  the  Mission  Field  it  is  of 
importance  that  those  missionaries  engaged  in  scientific 
work  should  be  graduates  of  a university  and  possess 
academic  status.  Moreover,  speaking  generally  the 
knowledge  required  for  most  university  medical  degrees 
is  in  advance  of  that  needed  for  the  diplomas  of  other 
bodies,  and  that  is  all  to  the  gain,  for  reasons  stated 
already.  There  are  however  the  Fellowship  diplomas 
of  the  Royal  College  of  Surgeons  of  England  and  of  the 
Royal  College  of  Surgeons  of  Edinburgh,  which  can  in 
no  way  be  regarded  as  inferior  to  university  degrees, 
either  in  the  severity  of  the  examinations  or  in  the 
prestige  that  they  confer.  Indeed  the  first  named 
stands  out  as  one  of  the  most  coveted  surgical  dis- 
tinctions in  the  world.  And  if  it  is  possible  for  any 
Medical  Missionary  student  to  work  for  one  of  these 
diplomas  in  addition  to  his  degrees,  lie  should  not 
hesitate  to  do  so. 

Amongst  other  things  the  pre-graduate  stage  of  the 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


181 


Medical  Missionary  should  be  conspicuous  for  earnest 
conscientious  practical  work.  He  will  need  all  the 
clinical  experience  he  can  gather  as  well  as  all  the  book 
knowledge  he  can  acquire.  He  should  duly  attend  the 
practice  of  the  special  departments,  and  familiarise 
himself  with  all  the  technique  of  clinical  investigations, 
pathological  work,  etc.  Furthermore,  he  should  early 
establish  in  the  estimation  of  his  teachers  and  in  the 
opinion  of  his  fellow  students  a character  for  thorough- 
ness and  keenness.  In  a certain  sense  the  credit  of  the 
calling  he  is  taking  up  rests  in  his  keeping,  and  however 
he  may  lack  brilliancy — and  that  is  by  no  means  always 
an  asset — he  should  never  gain  the  reputation  of  being 
a “ slacker.” 

The  Medical  Missionary  student  should  endeavour 
to  take  as  many  of  the  hospital  appointments  open  to 
students  as  he  can  make  good  use  of.  Whenever  there 
are  school  examinations  to  be  taken,  scholarships  or 
prizes  to  be  competed  for,  he  should  try  with  a laudable 
emulation  to  obtain  a good  place  in  the  list, — not  just 
for  the  sake  of  the  immediate  distinction  such  may 
bring  to  him,  but  pre-eminently  because  the  work  he 
will  in  this  way  have  to  do  provides  an  excellent  train- 
ing for  the  sterner  tests  that  will  be  his  in  later  days. 
It  is  also  of  importance  that  the  value  of  athletics 
should  not  be  forgotten,  both  because  of  the  need  to 
maintain  and  improve  a good  physique  and  in  the 
interests  of  the  cultivation  of  true  manliness. 

Thus  would  we  set  a high  ideal  for  the  pre-graduate 
section  of  the  Medical  Missionary’s  professional  training. 
The  immense  importance  of  laying  a strong  foundation 
for  the  strenuous  life  that  is  inseparable  from  this 
vocation  can  never  be  exaggerated.  The  best  and  only 
the  best  must  be  the  goal  always  aimed  at ; and  the 


182 


THE  TRAINING 


temptation  to  be  satisfied  with  something  less  must  be 
stedfastly  resisted.  From  the  beginning  of  his  student 
days  the  injunction  of  the  Great  Apostle — “ Thou 
therefore,  my  son,  endure  hardness  as  a good  6oldier  of 
Jesus  Christ  ” — should  be  the  note  ringing  in  his  ears. 
And  if  at  times  the  task  seems  long  and  its  toils  too 
wearying,  the  Medical  Missionary  student  can  surely 
claim  and  receive  that  grace  and  help  which  only  His 
Lord  can  give. 

(2)  Post-Graduate. — The  Medical  Missionary  has  now 
become  a fully  qualified  medical  practitioner,  and  to 
that  extent  has  completed  the  greater  section  of  his 
professional  training.  He  has  come  to  the  point  at  which 
his  offer  of  service  can  appropriately  be  communicated 
to  the  Society  with  which  he  desires  to  become  con- 
nected. Yet  at  the  same  time  he  has  by  no  means 
qualified  himself  for  instant  service  on  the  field.  Indeed, 
if  he  go  out  at  this  stage  it  may  be  to  court  a great 
disaster  to  his  career,  and  to  learn  in  the  wrong  place 
and  by  bitter  experience  what  he  should  have  acquired 
in  post-graduate  training  here  at  home.  It  is  there- 
fore highly  necessary  that  we  should  consider  the  most 
approved  manner  in  which  the  Medical  Missionary 
candidate  can  now  proceed  to  add  to  his  knowledge — 
experience. 

There  are  two  things  that  naturally  suggest  themselves 
as  essential  divisions  in  this  post-graduate  work  : first, 
the  experience  that  can  be  gained  in  general  medical 
and  surgical  practice,  and  secondly,  the  special  experi- 
ence that  is  required,  for  one  going  abroad,  in  certain 
particular  sections  of  scientific  medicine. 

As  to  the  first  of  these  we  are  persuaded  that  nothing 
is  more  valuable  or  more  likely  to  give  what  is  required 
than  resident  hospital  appointments.  In  fact  it  is 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY  183 

difficult  to  avoid  the  conclusion  that  the  holding  of  at 
least  one  such  post  should  be  regarded  as  an  indispens- 
able part  of  the  post-graduate  training  of  the  Medical 
Missionary.  In  no  other  way  can  he  so  well  acquire 
that  practice  in  clinical  observation,  and  that  intimacy 
with  the  treatment  of  medical  and  surgical  diseases, 
which  it  is  essential  he  should  possess  when  called  upon 
later  to  undertake  the  work  of  a hospital  on  the  field. 
Furthermore,  it  is  of  supreme  advantage  to  a young 
medical  graduate  to  have  the  opportunity  of  working 
immediately  under  the  eye  of  a master  in  the  profession, 
and  to  have  his  natural  weaknesses  in  diagnosis  and 
practice  pointed  out  and  corrected.  Then,  too,  whilst  he 
is  engaged  in  preparatory  work  for  one  of  the  higher 
examinations  a resident  appointment  carries  with  it 
a high  degree  of  intrinsic  value. 

One  point  should  be  emphasised,  and  that  is  that 
whatever  other  appointments  may  be  held  a surgical 
resident  post  should  not  be  omitted.  Surgery  of 
necessity  bulks  very  largely  in  the  practice  of  almost 
every  mission  hospital,  and  we  have  known  of  one 
case  at  least  where  the  failure  to  hold  a surgical  house 
appointment  before  going  out  placed  the  young  Medical 
Missionary  at  a very  grave  disadvantage.  At  least 
six  months  should  be  devoted  to  the  work  of  such  a 
post. 

In  connection  with  this  general  part  of  his  post- 
graduate training  there  is  one  caution  which  we  would 
venture  to  give  to  the  Medical  Missionary  candidate, 
and  that  is,  not  to  allow  his  off-time  to  be  disturbed 
by  too  many  outside  calls  for  meetings,  etc.  It  is, 
alas,  too  easy  for  this  to  happen,  and  secretaries  of 
Societies  are  too  prone,  as  they  hear  of  a prospective 
Medical  Missionary,  who  perhaps  can  be  introduced  to 


184 


THE  TRAINING 


churches  as  an  outgoing  volunteer,  to  press  upon  him 
the  duty  of  fitting  in  such  engagements.  Yet,  what- 
ever gain  may  be  derived  by  the  words  that  a Medical 
Missionary  candidate  may  thus  address,  nothing  can 
compensate  for  the  distraction  and  diversion  that  such 
work  involves  to  the  proper  claims  of  his  resident  post. 
An  occasional  meeting  or  Sunday  service  may  do  no 
harm,  but  a jealous  guard  should  be  kept  against  any- 
thing like  an  habitual  invasion  of  the  time  he  has  at 
disposal  during  this  period. 

We  come  next  to  the  second  part  of  the  post-graduate 
training,  viz.,  that  which  gives  special  experience  in 
certain  particular  branches  of  medicine.  As  to  this, 
no  hard  and  fast  rule  can  be  laid  down,  and  each  case 
must  be  dealt  with  upon  its  merits,  with  due  regard 
to  the  field  in  view.  But  speaking  generally,  there 
are  five  branches  of  medical  study  from  which  the 
Medical  Missionary  candidate  will  do  well  to  select 
subjects  to  which  to  devote  from  six  to  nine  months 
of  his  time  before  proceeding  abroad.  These  are  : (1) 
tropical  medicine,  (2)  eye  diseases,  (3)  practical 
bacteriology,  with  in  addition,  in  some  cases,  public 
health,  (4)  difficult  midwifery,  and  (5)  throat,  nose  and 
ear  diseases. 

The  first-named  of  these  can  be  studied  at  one  or 
other  of  the  special  tropical  schools  now  established, 
and  for  those  going  forth  to  fields  like  Africa,  India,  and 
and  the  greater  part  of  China,  a course  of  three  months 
at  such  a school  should  be  rigidly  regarded  as  an 
essential.  It  would  be  well,  also,  if  those  taking  the 
course  were  to  obtain  the  diploma  in  tropical  medicine, 
for  which  an  examination  has  to  be  passed. 

The  study  of  eye  diseases  should  be  pursued  at  a 
special  ophthalmic  hospital,  with  which,  in  most  cases, 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


185 


courses  particularly  designed  for  post-graduates  will 
be  found  to-day.  If  the  field  in  view  be  India,  China, 
North  Africa,  Palestine,  Persia  or  Arabia  and  certain 
other  lands,  it  wall  well  repay  the  Medical  Missionary 
to  obtain,  if  he  can  do  so,  a junior  clinical  assistant- 
ship  under  one  of  the  ophthalmic  surgeons.  If  that  is 
impossible,  then  a clear  three  months  should  be  devoted 
to  regular  attendance  upon  the  practice  of  the  oph- 
thalmic hospital  which  has  been  selected.  In  any 
case,  care  should  be  taken  to  include  one  of  the  classes 
on  the  operative  surgery  of  the  eye  which  are  arranged 
from  time  to  time  at  most  eye  hospitals. 

Practical  bacteriology  is  increasingly  important,  and 
six  weeks  given  to  a laboratory  class  in  this  subject 
will  be  of  great  value.  There  is  hardly  a field  where 
the  technique  and  knowledge  thus  gained  will  not 
prove  most  useful.  If  beyond  this  it  be  possible  to 
devote  from  three  to  six  months  in  the  study  of  public 
health,  it  may  be  very  valuable  in  the  case  of  those 
proceeding  to  fields  like  China,  where  sanitary  reform 
is  bound,  ere  long,  to  be  a burning  topic,  and  where  the 
Medical  Missionaries  may  be  looked  to  for  a lead  in 
such  matters.  A course  of  lectures  on  hospital  ad- 
ministration, as  is  usually  held  in  connection  with  the 
D.P.H.  course,  will  also  be  of  real  value  in  view  of  what 
Medical  Missionaries  have  to  do  on  the  field  in  the 
administration  of  their  own  hospitals. 

A course  of  difficult  midwifery  particularly  applies 
to  lady  Medical  Missionaries,  and  should,  in  their  case, 
be  deemed  essential.  On  the  part  also  of  men  medicals, 
a study  of  the  subject  for  those  going  to  certain  fields, 
e.g.  China,  may  be  esteemed  as  very  important.  The 
practice  of  one  or  other  of  the  lying-in  hospitals  affords 
scope  in  this  direction,  and  from  one  to  three  months 


186 


THE  TRAINING 


given  to  this  study  may  prove  later  on  to  have  been 
time  amply  repaid.  In  a similar  way  experience  in 
clinical  and  operative  gynaecology  at  some  hospital 
for  women  may  mean  to  the  Medical  Missionary  candi- 
date, man  or  woman,  considerable  gain. 

Finally  a study  of  throat,  nose  and  ear  diseases  at 
some  special  hospital  devoted  to  that  class  of  affections 
is  of  real  value,  and  this  can  often  be  worked  in  with 
the  class  of  practical  bacteriology  and  attendance  at 
an  eye  hospital.  As  in  the  case  of  the  last-named  if  it 
be  possible  to  obtain  a post  of  junior  clinical  assistant, 
it  will  be  well  to  do  so  inasmuch  as  this  confers  the 
privilege  of  conducting  many  of  the  minor  operations 
and  becoming  proficient  in  the  technique  of  the  methods 
of  examination.  Generally  speaking  three  months  will 
prove  sufficient  for  this  section  of  post-graduate  training. 

There  are  of  course,  beyond  the  foregoing,  other 
branches  of  medical  practice,  e.g.  skin  diseases,  which 
may  with  great  advantage  claim  a share  in  the  time  at 
disposal.  And  it  may  be  that  in  the  place  of  some  of 
those  we  have  specially  drawn  attention  to,  such  other 
work  should  be  included.  But,  however  that  may 
be,  enough  will  have  been  said,  we  think,  to  make  it 
apparent  that  there  is  ample  to  occupy  the  time 
and  energy  of  the  Medical  Missionary  candidate  ere 
he  sails  for  his  destination. 

On  the  other  hand  he  should  not  undertake  more 
than  he  can  adequately  deal  with  at  any  given  time, 
nor  allow  his  time  to  be  frittered  away  with  running 
from  one  hospital  to  another.  Rather  should  he,  in 
the  first  place,  carefully  think  over  his  available  time, 
and  then  by  consultation  with  Medical  Missionaries 
from  the -field,  and  others  best  qualified  to  give  advice, 
map  out  a schedule  of  the  work  that  seems  most 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


187 


necessary  and  that  can  be  properly  carried  through. 
Having  done  so  he  should  as  determinedly  give  himself 
to  the  study  of  the  subjects  selected  as  he  did  previously 
to  the  work  of  his  hospital  appointments.  The  result, 
by  God’s  help,  will  then  be  all  that  could  be  desired, 
and  the  Medical  Missionary  will  finally  terminate  his 
post-graduate  training  and  sail  for  the  field,  feeling 
that  he  has  equipped  himself  professionally,  as  far  as 
!t  has  been  possible  for  him  so  to  do,  for  the  great 
purpose  to  which  he  has  consecrated  his  life. 

(3)  Probationary. — Not  much  need  be  said  under 
this  heading ; but  it  is  necessary  to  emphasise  that  the 
Medical  Missionary,  during  the  two  years  of  his  proba- 
tion on  the  field,  and  whilst  he  is  pursuing  his  language 
studies,  should  not  be  severed  from  contact  with  medical 
work.  It  is,  of  course,  of  highest  importance  ihat  the 
primary  claim  of  this  period  should  be  language  study, 
and  that  with  such  in  view  he  should  not  be  placed  in 
charge  of  medical  stations,  or  where  he  will  perforce 
have  to  respond  to  the  call  for  medical  help.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  young  Medical  Missionary,  if  he  sees 
no  medical  work,  will  get  “ rusty,”  and  hence  he  should 
be  placed  at  some  principal  medical  station  where 
there  is  at  least  one  senior  Medical  Missionary  whose 
work  he  can  watch,  from  whose  experience  he  can  learn, 
and  under  whose  guidance  he  can  familiarise  himself 
with  the  diseases  of  the  people,  and  the  most  successful 
modes  of  treatment.  Too  often,  by  being  denied  such 
an  advantage,  have  Medical  Missionaries  suffered  in 
their  professional  work,  and  though  it  may  mean  delay 
in  opening  up  fresh  medical  stations,  the  new  Medical 
Missionary  should  be  carefully  shielded  during  his 
probationary  period  and  given  the  opportunity  to  add 
the  coping  stone  to  his  professional  preparation. 


188 


THE  TRAINING 


There  is  also  this  further  point  upon  which  emphasis 
should  be  laid,  viz. — the  great  importance  of  the  young 
Medical  Missionary  learning,  during  this  period,  to 
understand  native  customs,  and  to  grasp  the  native 
point  of  view.  How  essential  all  this  is  to  successful 
work,  none  but  Medical  Missionaries  of  experience  can 
adequately  realise.  But  the  fact  of  its  immense  im- 
portance enhances  the  value  of  this  probationary 
period  of  training. 

(4)  Furlough. — What  has  been  said  already  concern- 
ing the  extent  and  variety  of  a Medical  Missionary’s 
professional  training  will,  we  think,  make  it  easy  to 
understand  that  it  is  necessary  for  the  periods  of  fur- 
lough to  be  utilised,  in  part,  for  the  acquisition  of 
fresh  knowledge.  Medical  science  is  forever  advancing, 
and  nothing  is  easier  than  for  medical  men  who  are 
immersed  in  busy  practices  in  this  country  to  become 
very  quickly  out  of  touch  with  new  discoveries  in 
modern  medicine  and  surgery.  How  much  more,  then, 
is  it  almost  a certainty  that  those  who  are  working  as 
Medical  Missionaries  on  the  Foreign  Field  will  remain 
unaware  of,  and  their  practice  unaffected  by,  these 
advances  ! They  have  small  time  even  for  perusing 
medical  journals,  and  working,  as  so  many  of  them  are, 
for  long  periods  in  isolated  places,  it  is  next  to  impossible 
for  them  to  do  other  than  get  into  arrears,  so  to  speak, 
with  their  medical  knowledge. 

Herein  then  lies  the  obvious  need  that  part  of  the 
furlough  of  a Medical  Missionary  should  be  given  up 
to  refreshing  his  acquaintance  with  medical  science. 
He  should  be  given  time  free  to  attend  the  practice  of 
some  hospital,  and  to  take,  if  necessary,  one  or  other 
special  course  of  study  which  his  experience  on  the 
field  shows  to  be  of  particular  importance.  Moreover, 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


180 


not  only  should  a sufficiency  of  time  be  granted  for  this 
purpose,  but  the  Medical  Missionary  should  be  afforded 
all  the  guidance  that  can  be  given  by  the  Medical 
members  of  the  Home  Committee,  and  where  such  is 
required,  financial  assistance  should  be  rendered.  It 
should  in  no  way  be  regarded  that  time  and  money 
spent  in  this  direction  are  an  expenditure  which  is  of 
less  value  than  that  given  to  deputation  work,  great  as 
is  the  importance  of  the  latter.  Rather  should  it  be  held 
that  for  the  Medical  Missionary  to  fully  avail  himself 
of  every  opportunity  that  is  open  to  him  of  establishing 
an  up-to-date  contact  with  modern  medicine  is  to  make 
a direct  and  vital  contribution  to  the  efficiency  of  the 
great  work  with  which  he  is  entrusted  on  the  field. 
Facilties  are  not  lacking  to-day  in  all  the  main  centres 
in  the  Home  land  whereby  Medical  Missionaries  can 
obtain  the  exact  courses  which  they  require,  and  it  is 
to  be  hoped  that  in  a far  larger  measure  than  hitherto, 
this  part  of  their  post-graduate  training  will  take  a 
recognised  place  in  their  periods  of  furlough. 

II.  Missionary  Training 

We  now  commence  the  consideration  of  an  aspect 
of  the  Medical  Missionary’s  training  which  is  of  supreme 
importance,  and  which,  while  in  no  way  obscuring  the 
necessity  of  regarding  the  professional  preparation  in  the 
light  of  a solemn  obligation,  is  yet  that  which  must  be 
kept  always  in  a foremost  place.  It  has  already  been 
observed  how  essential  it  is  that  the  Medical  Missionary 
should  be  pre-eminently  a missionary,  and  that  in  no 
way  he  should  ever  forget  that  he  is  called  to  preach 
as  well  as  to  heal. 

Speaking  at  the  Ecumenical  Missionary  Conference 
held  in  New  York  in  1900,  Dr  C.  F.  Harford,  Principal 


190 


THE  TRAINING 


of  Livingstone  College,  and  Secretary  of  the  C.M.S. 
Medical  Auxiliary,  placed  the  same  emphasis  upon 
this  essential  fact.  He  said — “ I would  assert  in  the 
most  unhesitating  manner  that  the  Medical  Missionary 
must  be  every  inch  a missionary.  It  is  the  one  who 
can  aid  the  body  who  will  have  influence  on  the  souls 
of  the  patients,  and  if  there  is  a dissociation  between 
the  medical  and  the  spiritual,  the  primary  idea  of 
the  Medical  Missionary  is  gone.  We  want  then,  as 
Medical  Missionaries,  persons  of  the  deepest  spiritual 
power.  There  is  no  need  of  any  elaborate  theological 
training,  nor  even  must  the  Medical  Missionary  neces- 
sarily be  a great  preacher,  but  experience  in  the  sacred 
privilege  of  soul  winning,  and  the  power  and  know- 
ledge to  point  clearly  the  way  to  everlasting  life,  should 
be  regarded  as  indispensable.”  In  the  same  strain 
Dr  Jacob  Chamberlain  of  India  spoke  at  this  Conference, 
using  the  following  words — “ The  idea  is  confirmed 
that  no  man  and  no  woman  should  assume  to  be  a 
Medical  Missionary  without  putting  the  great  emphasis 
on  the  second  word,  i.e.  missionary.  Anyone  who  goes 
out  as  a Medical  Missionary,  and  does  not  put  the 
emphasis  on  that  second  word,  is  a misfit  in  the 
missionary  ranks.” 

But  now  there  arises  the  practical  question  as  to  the 
extent  and  character  of  this  evangelistic  work  of  the 
Medical  Missionary.  Does  it  mean  that  to  the  Medical 
Missionary  will  fall  all  the  different  forms  of  missionary 
labour  which  attach  to  the  calling  of  the  Evangelistic 
Missionary  ? Clearly  and  emphatically,  No  ! Obviously, 
to  expect  one  who  has  the  responsible  and  exacting 
demands  of  medical  and  surgical  work,  coupled,  as 
it  often  is,  with  insufficiency  of  skilled  help,  to  add  to 
all  this,  the  work  of  a pastor,  a teacher,  a preacher, 


191 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 

and  a general  missionary  superintendent,  is  to  lay  a 
premium  on  inefficiency,  and  insure  an  early  break- 
down. No  such  attempt  at  the  impossible  is  necessary 
or  expedient.  The  Medical  Missionary  must  be  an  evan- 
gelist, but  his  sendee  in  that  supreme  task  must  not  be 
expected  to  overstep  the  limits  of  his  special  sphere. 

That  is  to  say,  the  Medical  Missionary  will  to  the 
utmost  work  as  a preacher  of  the  Gospel  amongst  the 
patients  who  seek  his  aid.  He  will  leave  no  stone 
unturned  to  win  souls  for  Christ  in  his  hospital  and 
dispensary,  and  when  engaged  elsewhere  on  his  errands 
of  mercy.  If.  in  addition,  as  must  rarely  be  the  case, 
the  Medical  Missionary  has  time  for  further  evangelistic 
effort,  beyond  the  bounds  of  his  medical  work,  it  will 
be  to  him  a coveted  privilege  to  redeem  such  oppor- 
tunities for  the  sake  of  Christ.  But  if  no  occasions  like 
that  present  themselves,  he  need  not  repine,  but  rather 
esteem  all  the  higher  the  unique  opportunities  which 
come  to  him  through  his  medical  work. 

One  word  of  caution  should,  however,  be  stated  here. 
The  Medical  ^Missionary  will  be  performing  a disservice 
to  the  whole  cause,  and  not  adding  to  its  value,  if,  in 
order  to  do  what  may  appear  to  be  the  more  spiritual 
side,  he  neglects  the  rightful  claims  of  his  medical 
work.  True,  he  must  never  shelve  the  general  super- 
vision of  the  evangelistic  work  of  his  Medical  Mission, 
but  if  his  pressing  medical  duties  forbid  his  taking 
part  in  all  the  services,  if  his  work  as  a doctor  effectu- 
ally prevents  his  taking  all  the  share  he  would  like  to 
do  in  such  work,  then  the  Medical  Missionary  should 
regard  it  as  his  part  to  see  that  others — fellow  mission- 
aries and  native  helpers — are  redeeming  the  oppor- 
tunities which  the  medical  work  has  opened  up  and 
which  he  can  himself  utilise  so  sparingly. 


192 


THE  TRAINING 


Now  if  from  what  has  been  said  above  we  may  deduce 
the  general  character  of  the  Medical  Missionary’s 
evangelistic  work,  it  will  be  easy  to  determine  wherein 
he  needs  to  be  thoroughly  well  grounded,  and  the  lines 
along  which  his  preparation  should  proceed. 

He  will  require  to  possess — 

1.  A knowledge  of  the  Bible,  particularly  the  Gospels 
and  Epistles,  and  how  to  use  it. 

2.  A clear  grasp  of  the  fundamental  doctrines  of  the 
Christian  faith. 

3.  A knowledge  of  the  evidences  of  Christianity. 

4.  An  intelligent  acquaintance  with  the  religious 
beliefs  of  the  people  amongst  whom  he  is  to  labour. 

5.  An  experience  of  definite  evangelistic  work,  in- 
cluding soul  winning. 

There  is  nothing  in  this  which  need  alarm  any  Medical 
Missionary  candidate,  nor  is  there  one  point  which  he 
will  not  be  thankful  to  have  studied  when  he  is  brought 
face  to  face  with  his  missionary  work  on  the  field. 
Placed  opposite  to  that  work,  the  above  summary  is 
the  irreducible  minimum  of  efficient  preparation,  nor 
is  it  more  than  any  well-drilled  Christian  worker,  here 
at  home,  should  be  expected  to  possess.  We  are  fully 
aware  of  the  onerous  demands  upon  time  and  strength 
which  confront  medical  students  of  the  present  day,  in 
regard  to  their  professional  work.  And  in  no  sense  of 
the  word  would  we  wish  to  weaken  the  close  and  earnest 
attention  which  those  preparing  for  Medical  Missionary 
work  should  give  to  their  medical  training.  The  highest 
skill  and  widest  ability  is  needed  on  the  Mission  Field. 
But  when  all  that  is  said  and  allowed,  the  imperative 
necessity  for  preparedness  in  relation  to  what  is  essenti- 
ally the  supreme  purpose  of  the  work  must  be  conceded. 
To  designate  the  work  as  Medical  Missionary,  and  yet 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


193 


fail  to  include  an  adequate  missionary  preparation 
would  be  but  to  retain  a name  that  would  of  necessity 
— owing  to  this  elemental  defect — come  dangerously 
near  a misnomer,  as  regards  the  practice  of  Medical 
Missions. 

It  is  therefore  of  material  importance  that  due 
consideration  should  be  given  to  the  problem  as 
to  how  this  Missionary  preparation  of  the  Medical 
Missionary  can  best  be  secured. 

Two  possible  ways  of  solving  the  question  are  sug- 
gested by  the  Report  of  the  Fifth  Commission  of  the 
World  Missionary  Conference,  and,  taken  together, 
they  would  seem  to  afford  sufficient  promise  of  covering 
the  ground.  One  is  what  may  be  called  the  outside, 
and  consists  in  plans  whereby  the  medical  mission 
student  can  be  helped,  by  organised  effort,  in  the 
direction  desired.  The  other  may  be  described  as  the 
inside,  and  is  that  preparation  which  he  can  work  out 
for  himself.  Both  are  important,  and  both  should 
find  a place  in  the  experience  of  every  medical  missionary 
candidate. 

To  begin  with  the  first,  the  suggestion  is  made  that 
the  Secretaries  of  Missionary  Societies,  together  with 
the  Student  Volunteer  Missionary  Union  and  the  Secre- 
taries of  Missionary  Training  institutions,  should  early 
get  into  touch  with  a considerable  proportion  of  their 
medical  candidates,  and  so  be  in  a position  to  help  them 
all  through  their  student  days.  This  has  already  been 
done  in  the  experience  of  one  Society  (the  B.M.S.), 
which  has  formed  into  a small  Association  all  those 
medical  students  with  which  it  can  come  into  contact 
who  are  preparing  for  its  foreign  work.  Those  belonging 
to  the  Association  are  communicated  with  regularly, 
and  where  there  are  a few  in  one  centre,  these  have 


N 


194 


THE  TRAINING 


meetings  at  occasional  intervals,  at  which  an  effort 
is  made  to  secure  the  presence  of  a Medical  Missionary 
from  the  field,  who  can  give  his  experience  of  the  work 
and  afford  counsel  and  guidance.  Such  meetings  have 
been  found  most  helpful  in  sustaining  an  earnest  spirit 
amongst  the  students,  and  in  keeping  them  in  close 
touch  with  the  Society.  Moreover,  there  has  been 
arranged  in  connection  with  this  Association  a scheme 
of  Bible  and  Theological  study  which  the  students  are 
asked  to  pursue  through  their  medical  course,  and 
upon  which  two  examinations  are  held  during  the 
period  of  preparation.  These  afford  the  students 
themselves  good  tests  of  their  knowledge  and  give  to 
the  Society  a means  of  knowing  how  far  their  medical 
candidates  have  the  requisite  amount  of  missionary 
preparedness. 

Apart  from  what  has  thus  been  done  in  one  instance, 
there  is,  of  course,  the  instruction  that  is  given  by  the 
Medical  Missionary  training  institutes  to  the  students 
preparing  under  their  auspices. 

This  consists  in  both  systematic  biblical  instruction 
and  in  actual  experience  in  evangelistic  mission  work. 
Taking  as  an  example  the  training  work  of  the  Edinburgh 
Medical  Missionary  Society,  we  find  that  the  students 
who  are  prepared  under  its  aegis  have  first  of  all  yearly 
courses  of  lectures  on  the  Bible,  Christian  Doctrine 
and  Evidence,  together  with  some  outlines  of  the  non- 
Christian  faiths.  All  this,  it  will  be  observed,  covers 
most  essential  ground.  Then,  in  addition,  the  students 
engage  in  practical  evangelistic  work  in  the  Cowgate 
district  of  Edinburgh,  where  the  Society  has  as  its 
mission  headquarters  a building  known  as  the  Living- 
stone Memorial.  Here  a resident  doctor  is  kept,  and 
an  active  dispensary  work  carried  on,  in  which  the 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 


195 


senior  students  take  a large  share.  Open-air  preach- 
ing, dispensary  services,  and  all  the  work  of  a busy 
home  mission  centre  give  to  the  embryo  Medical  Mission- 
aries splendid  scope  for  the  missionary  part  of  their 
training,  and  many  a doctor  upon  the  Mission  Field 
to-day  looks  back  with  gratitude  upon  his  “ Cowgate  ” 
experiences. 

The  same  might  be  said  of  the  training  afforded 
by  the  London  Medical  Missionary  Association,  with 
whose  Institute  there  are  connected  various  Medical 
Missions,  in  the  work  of  which  the  students  obtain  a 
direct  acquaintance  with  evangelistic  effort.  Systematic 
Bible  study  is  here  a feature  also,  and  is  of  a valuable 
character. 

For  those  students  unconnected  with  any  Medical 
Mission  training  college,  considerable  help  can  be 
derived  from  the  Bible  Study  Circles  organised  in  con- 
nection with  the  Student  Volunteer  Missionary  Union. 

There  would,  however,  seem  to  be  a distinct  need  for 
.greater  effort  on  the  part  of  the  larger  missionary  societies 
in  the  way  of  providing  more  systematic  assistance  for 
medical  missionary  students  in  the  missionary  side  of 
their  preparation.  Particularly  should  stress  be  laid 
upon  practical  evangelistic  work  and  definite  experience 
in  soul  winning.  It  is  to  be  feared  that  too  many 
medical  missionaries  have  gone  out  with  very  defective 
acquaintance  with  this  side  of  their  preparation,  and  as 
far  as  ever  societies  are  able,  their  medical  missionary 
students  should  be  guided  along  this  line. 

Then  in  the  next  place  there  is  the  preparation  that 
the  student  can  effect  for  himself.  This  is  of  paramount 
importance,  because  the  more  he  schools  himself  to 
habits  of  personal  devotion,  and  personal  Bible  study 
and  Christian  service,  the  more  will  he  lessen  the  risk 


196 


THE  TRAINING 


of  sinking  the  missionary  in  the  medical  and  the  stronger 
will  he  become  as  a hardened  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ. 

It  will  be  readily  realised  that  the  temptations  to 
faith  and  character  to  which  again  and  again  a Christian 
medical  student  is  subjected  are  often  very  acute. 
These  temptations  go  very  frequently  right  to  the 
foundation,  and  the  trial  is  often  a fiery  one.  They 
cannot  be  shirked,  however,  and  hard  though  it  may  be, 
the  medical  missionary  student  must  wrestle  with  them 
and  become  victorious.  Otherwise  he  will  stand  no 
chance  when  he  faces  yet  heavier  odds  on  the  field. 
Of  all  men  the  mission  field  has  no  room  for  those  who 
are  assailed  with  doubts  that  have  never  been  silenced. 

We  would  therefore  urge  with  great  earnestness  the 
importance  of  every  student  cultivating  a fife  of  private 
devotion,  prayer,  Bible  study,  and  thought,  and  main- 
taining as  far  as  ever  he  can  attendance  at  the  services 
of  the  House  of  God.  Beyond  this  it  seems  to  us  most 
important  that  when  opportunities  offer  for  evangel- 
istic work  in  the  open  air  and  in  mission  halls  on 
Sundays  these  should  be  seized,  as  well  as  any  openings 
for  personal  work  amongst  fellow-students,  and  with 
patients  in  the  wards.  There  is  nothing  that  so  keeps 
a man’s  faith  and  love  true  and  bright  as  personal 
service  for  the  Christ  who  has  redeemed  him.  And 
if  all  through  his  student  days  this  aspect  of  his 
missionary  preparation  is  regularly  maintained,  there 
will  be  no  fear  that  the  medical  missionary  student 
will  come  to  the  point  of  departure  for  his  field  of  work 
other  than  well  prepared  for  a life  of  loving,  successful 
testimony  for  his  Lord. 

There  is,  alas,  a terrible  danger  of  spiritual  declension 
during  student  and  post-graduate  days,  and  the  im- 
perative necessity  of  maintaining,  at  all  costs,  the 


197 


OF  A MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 

habits  of  personal  devotion  and  regular  Christian 
work,  to  which  we  have  alluded  is  very  great.  Pathetic 
examples  could  unhappily  be  given  of  quite  a number 
of  intending  medical  missionaries  who  have  suffered 
spiritual  shipwreck  during  their  student  career ; and 
we  owe  gratitude  to  Dr  Harold  Balme  for  specially 
drawing  attention  to  this  grievous  cause  of  leakage 
from  the  ranks  of  medical  missionary  volunteers.  In 
instance  after  instance,  it  is  to  be  feared,  that  the  lapse 
had  its  origin  in  a neglect  of  private  devotions,  in  a 
failure  to  cultivate  the  inner  Christian  life.  The 
“ morning  watch  ” has  been  omitted  or  slurred,  the 
“ daily  portion  ” has  been  crowded  out ; and  the 
pressure  of  other  claims  has  been  allowed  to  invade 
the  time  that  should  have  been  kept  sacred  for  the  soul. 
We  therefore  plead  that  medical  missionary  students 
should  keep  zealous  guard  over  their  spiritual  life,  and 
so  school  themselves  to  regular  habits  in  this  connection 
that  by  the  help  of  the  Holy  Spirit  they  shall  come  off 
victorious  in  this  insiduous  temptation  of  the  Evil  One. 

The  question  as  to  whether  missionary  societies 
should  make  provision  for  their  accepted  medical  candi- 
dates to  devote  a certain  period  before  sailing  to  a 
course  of  special  preparation  at  a missionary  college 
or  training  home  depends,  it  would  seem  to  us,  upon 
the  necessities  of  each  case.  If  such  a course  be  arranged 
with  the  idea  that  it  might  take  the  place  of  any  mission- 
ary preparation,  of  the  kind  described  above,  during 
the  student  days,  we  would  most  strongly  deprecate  it. 
Nothing  can  take  the  place  of  the  early  and  systematic 
association  of  the  medical  and  the  missionary  in  the 
life  thought  and  work  of  the  one  whose  purpose  it  is  to 
devote  his  life  to  his  service.  At  the  same  time  there 
are,  without  doubt,  occasions  where  the  addition  of  a 


198  TRAINING  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONARY 

course  of  special  missionary  study  after  graduation  is 
of  the  highest  advantage  and  indeed  necessary.  It 
should  certainly  be  insisted  upon  whenever  there  is 
any  suspicion  of  missionary  unpreparedness  on  the 
part  of  the  medical  missionary  candidate  ; and  if  there 
be  any  difficulty  in  fitting  in  a course  at  some  special 
College,  etc.,  a most  excellent  alternative  is  to  be  found 
in  a time  of  reading  and  evangelistic  work  with  some 
master  mind  in  the  ranks  of  the  Home  ministry. 

During  the  time  that  is  being  devoted  to  the  foregoing, 
or  whilst  the  accepted  medical  candidate  is  pursuing 
his  post-graduate  medical  studies,  a further  very  useful 
extra  preparation  is  that  which  consists  in  preliminary 
study  in  the  language  of  the  people  amongst  whom  he 
is  hoping  to  labour.  This  is  strongly  advocated  by  the 
Fifth  Commission  of  the  World  Conference,  and  now 
that  facilities  are  increasing  for  prosecuting  such  study 
in  at  least  a few  of  the  Eastern  languages,  and  in  more 
than  one  centre  in  Great  Britain,  and  elsewhere,  it  is 
to  be  hoped  that  medical  missionaries  will  not  be  sent 
out  in  future  without  having  had  this  addition  to 
their  missionary  preparation. 


CHAPTER  XI 


THE  HOME  BASE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ The  Church  of  Christ,  in  all  its  branches  represented  in  this 
Conference  has  at  its  command  resources  for  the  completion  of  this 
work  possessed  at  no  other  period  in  its  history  ...  It  is  not  so 
much  a question  of  new  resources  as  of  the  development  and  employ- 
ment of  resources  already  existing,  but  as  yet  either  undiscovered 
or  unemployed.” 

Report  of  Commission  VI.  of  the  World  Mis- 
sionary Conference,  1910,  upon  the  Home 
Base  of  Missions. 

No  attempt  to  deal  with  the  enterprise  of  Medical 
Missions  would  be  complete  without  some  reference 
to  the  Home  side  of  the  work.  In  many  senses,  indeed, 
this  may  be  regarded  as  that  of  more  pressing  import- 
ance. With  considerable  force  it  may  be  argued  that 
unless  a strong  and  effective  Home  Base  can  be  estab- 
lished it  is  idle  to  discuss  the  subjects  that  have  claimed 
our  attention  in  earlier  chapters.  Manifestly  there 
must  be  such  a base,  and  the  better  equipped  it  is 
to  consider  the  problems  and  wisely  sustain  the 
labours  of  those  at  the  front,  the  more  likely  it  is 
that  the  whole  cause  will  achieve  its  highest  degree 
of  usefulness. 

Let  us  commence  with  a clear  understanding  of  what 
is  exactly  meant  when  we  speak  of  the  Home  Base  of 
Medical  Missions.  It  is  of  first  moment  that  we  know 
where  we  stand  here.  We  refer  then,  by  the  foregoing 
designation,  to  either  separate  and  distinct  Medical 

199 


200 


THE  HOME  BASE 


Missionary  Societies,  or  to  Medical  Auxiliaries  of  general 
missionary  associations  : in  either  case,  organisations 
which  include  within  their  counsels  the  expert  judg- 
ment of  Christian  medical  men  interested  in  the  spread 
of  the  Gospel.  The  plan  whereby  the  direction  and 
support  of  Medical  Missionaries  and  their  work,  is  left 
in  the  hands  of  general  Mission  Boards,  to  be  dealt  with 
by  those  who  have  no  particular  knowledge  of  this 
phase  of  missionary  work,  is,  we  venture  to  assert, 
calculated  to  keep  back  rather  than  further  the  efficiency 
and  interests  of  the  enterprise.  To  imagine  that 
Medical  Missions  require  no  special  technical  experience 
for  their  administration  and  development  is  a serious 
misconception  which  should  never  be  entertained.  If 
there  is  a need,  and  room  for  the  propagation  on  the 
Mission  Field  of  this  highly  specialised  department  of 
missionary  labour,  then  here  at  home  there  should  be 
brought  into  being  definite  bodies  which  will  give  to 
Medical  Missions  the  consideration  and  support  that 
they  deserve  and  demand.  This  need  not  mean  more 
than  the  establishment  of  Medical  Mission  Auxiliaries 
in  connection  with  the  existing  missionary  societies, 
but  it  certainly  should  mean  nothing  less. 

The  functions  of  such  a Home  Base  may  next  be 
considered,  under  the  following  headings : (1)  Edu- 
cative, (2)  Financial,  (3)  Administrative. 

(1)  Educative. — The  work  of  informing  and  educat- 
ing the  Home  Churches  concerning  the  claims  and 
needs  of  Medical  Missions  is  naturally  the  first  task  to 
which  the  energies  of  a Medical  Mission  Auxiliary 
requires  to  be  directed.  Until  there  has  been  created 
an  intelligent  interest  in  this  aspect  of  missionary  service, 
there  cannot,  obviously,  be  any  effective  advance  in  its 
extension  on  the  field.  Here  clearly  must  be  found 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


201 


that  wise  laying  of  the  foundations  which  is  the  guarantee 
of  success  in  later  stages. 

Now  when  this  work  is  undertaken,  two  things 
become  apparent ; first,  that  Medical  Missions  possess 
qualities  which  permit  of  a particular  interest  being 
aroused,  and  second,  that  there  is  ample  room  for  the 
development  of  this  specialised  interest  without  de- 
tracting from  the  attention  that  should  be  given  to 
the  more  general  sides  of  missionary  labour.  Let  us 
look  at  each  of  these  in  turn  for  a few  moments. 

Taking  the  first,  it  will,  we  imagine,  be  patent  to 
all  those  who  have  become  acquainted  with  the  con- 
siderations discussed  in  previous  pages,  that  Medical 
Missions  are  calculated  to  make  an  appeal  to  the  mind 
and  heart  of  the  Home  Churches  which  is  all  their  own. 

The  note  they  strike  in  the  imagination  of  the  Christian 
public  is  one  which  inevitably  awakens  echoes  of 
sympathy  from  those  touched  with  the  spirit  of  Christ. 
The  message  they  convey  is  so  perfectly  human  and 
yet  so  divinely  inspired  with  the  compassion  of  the 
Saviour,  that  it  is  impossible  to  conceive  its  rejection. 
Again  and  again  it  will  be  found  that  the  man  who  is 
indifferent  to  missions  as  missions  is  quick  to  admit 
his  sympathy  with  Medical  Missions.  Their  necessity 
is  so  undeniable,  their  peculiar  functions  so  incontro- 
vertible that  there  is  hardly  anything  easier  in  the 
whole  realm  of  missionary  advocacy  than  to  generate  a 
special  interest  in  Medical  Missions. 

Then  when  we  come  to  inquire  whether  there  is 
room  for  the  creation  of  this  particular  interest  without 
displacing  that  taken  in  general  missionary  activities, 
there  is  elicited  the  very  plain  fact  that  such  is  the  low 
ebb  of  real  missionary  interest  in  so  large  a number  of 
the  Home  Churches,  that  the  scope  for  rallying  to  the 


202 


THE  HOME  BASE 


standard  of  Medical  Missions  the  many  who  manifest 
no  care  for  ordinary  mission  work  is  very  great  indeed. 
How  often  is  there  found  amongst  good  Christian 
people  a strange  and  unaccountable  blindness  to  the 
rightful  claims  of  Christian  missions  as  ordinarily 
carried  on.  Let,  however,  Medical  Missions  be  pre- 
sented to  these  friends,  and  it  is  wonderful,  in  many 
instances,  how  their  lack  of  apparent  sympathy  is 
transformed  into  active  support,  and  what  is  still  more 
encouraging,  this  new  interest  on  Medical  Missions  is 
often  followed  by  the  commencement  of  an  interest  in 
missions  generally.  Furthermore,  even  amongst  those 
who  are  included  in  the  ranks  of  “ Missionary  people,” 
it  is  repeatedly  the  fact  that  there  is  a ready  willing- 
ness to  appreciate  the  special  significance  of  Medical 
Missions.  The  introduction  and  diffusion  of  an  interest 
in  this  particular  section  of  the  missionary  enterprise 
is  therefore  not  merely  a possible  achievement,  but  one 
that  is  definitely  attainable. 

The  actual  ways  in  which  this  educative  function 
of  the  Medical  Mission  Home  Base  will  be  discharged 
are  many  and  various,  and  naturally  cover  a wide  field 
of  organised  advocacy.  Three  only  have  we  space  to 
mention  here.  First,  there  is  the  work  that  can  be 
done  by  the  production  of  medical  missionary  literature, 
and  which  cannot  be  said  at  present  to  be  at  all 
adequately  exploited.  The  appeal  of  the  pen  is  cer- 
tainly lacking,  to  a great  extent,  as  regards  Medical 
Missions.  Only  one  of  the  great  British  Missionary 
Societies  has,  as  one  of  its  monthly  publications,  a 
periodical  devoted  to  the  interests  of  Medical  Missions  ! 

Second,  there  is  the  invaluable  service  that  can  be 
rendered  by  mission  study.  It  is  impossible  to  speak 
too  highly  of  its  importance.  By  its  means,  if  Medical 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


203 


Missions  are  chosen  as  a subject,  a really  intelligent 
and  comprehensive  interest  can  be  secured.  The 
holding  of  study  circles  throughout  the  churches  would 
mean  a most  effective  contribution  to  the  removal  of 
apathy  and  the  stimulation  of  a keen  interest  in  this 
phase  of  missionary  effort. 

Third,  there  is  the  advocacy  of  the  spoken  voice. 
And  here  let  us  emphasise  the  value  of  securing  medical 
speakers,  and  if  possible,  medical  missionaries.  The 
doctor,  man  or  woman,  is  the  one  pre-eminently  who 
can,  with  greatest  influence,  press  the  claims  for  Medical 
Missions.  His  presentation  of  the  matter  will  be  often 
listened  to  and  be  welcomed  by  those  who  would  give 
very  little  attention  to  the  non-medical  speaker.  Not 
that  the  latter  cannot  urge  the  claims  of  Medical  Missions 
with  peculiar  power,  but  that  the  doctor  stands  in  the 
position  of  one  who  knows,  and  whose  professional 
knowledge  enables  him  to  speak  with  particular  force  and 
clearness.  The  organisation  of  special  medical  mission- 
ary meetings  at  which  addresses  can  be  given  upon  this 
aspect  of  Foreign  Missions,  is  therefore  a line  of  propa- 
ganda calculated  to  exert  a strong  influence  in  the  work 
of  the  Home  Base. 

(2)  Financial . — It  naturally  follows  that  after  the 
educative  function  has  been  brought  into  exercise, 
there  is  both  room  and  a call  for  the  putting  forth  of 
effort  to  secure  financial  support  on  behalf  of  Medical 
Missions.  As  to  the  necessity  for  adequate  funds,  so 
as  to  render  possible  efficient  development  of  the  work, 
enough  has  already  been  said  in  previous  pages.  And 
it  does  not  need  more  than  a passing  acquaintance 
with  the  general  state  of  the  finances  of  practically 
every  missionary  society  to  be  aware  that,  as  things 
stand  at  present,  there  is  small  hope  of  those  adequate 


204 


THE  HOME  BASE 


funds  being  at  disposal,  apart  from  what  may  be  accom- 
plished by  means  of  some  special  appeal.  Obviously 
then,  it  is  one  of  the  main  tasks  of  the  Medical  Mission 
Home  Base  to  bring  all  its  powers  to  bear  upon  the 
successful  organisation  of  such  special  support  as  may 
be  won  by  representing  the  needs  of  the  work. 

Moreover,  this  is  the  natural  complement  to  what 
is  done  in  educating  the  Home  Churches  as  to  Medical 
Missions.  If  they  are  being  led  to  an  appreciation  of 
the  value  of  the  enterprise,  then  in  orderly  sequence 
there  must  follow  an  appeal  for  the  consecration  of  gifts 
to  this  service. 

Now,  we  are  quite  aware  that  there  is  a good  deal 
said  in  defence  of  making  but  one  general  appeal  for 
missions,  and  refraining  from  the  organisation  of  Special 
Funds.  It  is  urged  that  the  latter  inevitably  mean  a 
diversion  of  help  from  the  General  Fund,  and  that  what 
is  given  in  one  direction  is  simply,  or  very  largely,  lost 
to  another.  Arguments  are  advanced  in  favour  of 
“ pooling  ” the  financial  result  of  every  appeal,  and 
whilst  no  objection  is  entertained  to  presenting  various 
aspects  of  the  work  and  stating  their  several  needs,  yet 
it  is  considered  by  many  that  it  is  inadvisable  to  create 
a distinct  and  Special  Fund  for  any  one  given  object. 
Of  course  this  will  be  understood  to  refer  only  to 
missionary  societies  which  are  general  in  their  character, 
and  not  purely  medical,  and  where  a Medical  Mission 
Department  takes  the  form  of  an  auxiliary. 

On  the  other  hand,  it  seems  to  us  that  there  are  several 
solid  reasons  in  favour  of  the  plan  of  having  a Special 
Fund,  certainly  as  far  as  Medical  Missions  are  concerned. 
In  the  first  place  there  is  the  undeniable  fact  that  there 
is  a not  inconsiderable  number  of  the  members  of  the 
Home  Churches  who  are  prepared  to  exhibit  practical 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


205 


sympathy  with  Medical  Missions,  while  remaining,  to  a 
great  extent,  untouched  by  the  appeal  of  missions  in 
general.  It  is  to  us  all  a source  of  regret  that  such 
friends  should  fail  to  realise  the  sublimity  of  the  mis- 
sionary enterprise  as  a whole,  or  miss  the  obvious 
moral  that  “ Christian  ” and  “ Missionary  ” are  inter- 
changeable terms,  in  the  vocabulary  of  the  religion  of 
Jesus  Christ.  But  it  is  nevertheless  the  fact  that  in 
the  modern  Church  many  are  glad  and  willing  to  accord 
their  support  to  Medical  Missions,  if  the  appeal  for  that 
work  be  presented  to  them,  when  to  the  claims  of 
missions,  as  ordinarily  understood,  they  only  shew  a 
nominal  interest. 

Then  there  is,  in  the  second  place,  the  further  con- 
sideration that  many  of  the  members  of  the  churches, 
who  are  already  keen  supporters  of  missionary  work 
can  be  induced  to  take  a still  larger  share  in  the  cause 
if  they  have  brought  under  their  notice  some  special 
section  of  the  work  requiring  particular  help.  That,  it 
will  also  be  admitted,  is  an  unmistakeable  fact.  Again 
and  again  has  it  been  found  that  the  result  of  making 
an  appeal  for  Medical  Missions,  after  repeated  attempts 
to  increase  the  giving  of  any  Church  or  congregation 
for  general  missionary  funds  had  been  made  with  vary- 
ing success,  has  been  to  enlist  new  and  fresh  subscriptions 
from  those  who  had  apparently  arrived  at  the  limit  of 
their  missionary  contributions.  A new  chord  has  been 
set  vibrating  in  the  sympathies  of  the  heart,  and  to  the 
fresh  strains  there  has  come  a renewed  uprising  of  the 
spirit  of  the  Master.  The  need  for  an  advance  in  giving, 
in  order  to  meet  a hitherto  unknown  want  of  the  Mission 
Field,  has  pressed  itself  home  upon  the  Christian  con- 
sciousness, and  the  appeal  for  such,  instead  of  leading 
to  diversion  of  support,  has  discovered  additional  help 


206 


THE  HOME  BASE 


and  enhanced  the  conception  of  the  greatness  of  the 
missionary  enterprise. 

Beyond  this  yet  again,  it  is  suggested  in  the  third 
place  that  specialisation  in  giving  renders  the  act  very 
frequently  more  intelligent,  and  less  indefinite.  We 
do  not  say  that  this  is  always  the  case,  nor  that  the 
reverse  is  by  any  means  an  unvarying  rule.  But  it  is 
without  doubt  true  that  contributions  devoted  to  special 
aspects  of  the  work  other  than  to  the  cause  in  general, 
do  mean  to  the  giver,  in  many  instances,  a more  definite 
interest  and  a clearer  idea  of  the  scope  and  character 
of  the  work  than  is  otherwise  too  frequently  the  case. 
The  subscriber  who,  in  addition  to  what  he  may  give 
to  the  General  Fund  of  his  missionary  society,  con- 
tributes to  a Medical  Mission  Fund,  for  the  support  of 
doctors,  nurses,  and  hospitals,  acquires  through  so 
doing  a broader  grasp  of  the  work,  in  the  large  majority 
of  cases,  than  is  the  case  when  he  makes  no  such  special 
subscription.  The  very  act  of  particularising  his  gifts 
causes  him  to  think  more  about  the  work,  and  to  become 
more  conversant  with  its  diversities  of  operation. 

And  finally,  there  is  the  testimony  of  experience,  con- 
cerning which,  as  far  as  can  be  ascertained,  there  is  no 
uncertain  sound.  In  the  case  of  those  societies  which 
have  instituted  special  Medical  Mission  Funds,  far 
from  leading  to  support,  being  diverted  from  General 
Funds,  it  has  been  emphatically  proven  that  the  Medical 
Mission  appeal  has  resulted  in  the  creation  of  new  and 
“ found  ” revenue.  In  a certain  few  instances,  sub- 
scriptions, which  previously  went  into  the  General 
Fund,  may  have  been  given  to  the  Medical  Fund,  but 
that  is  the  rare  exception,  and  not  the  rule.  What  has 
actually  happened  is  that  the  support  accorded  to  the 
Medical  Mission  appeal  has  been  so  encouraging  that 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


207 


the  societies  in  question  have  been  enabled  to  make 
an  advance  in  their  Medical  Missions  that  otherwise 
was  deemed  impossible.  Doctors  have  been  sent  out, 
hospitals  erected,  fresh  medical  stations  commenced, 
and  the  entire  medical  field  impelled  forward  with  the 
stimulus  of  new  hope  and  vigour.  Instead  of  the 
General  Funds  having  to  declare  their  inadequacy  to 
meet  such  calls,  they  have  not  had  even  to  face  the 
problem,  and,  by  the  growth  of  the  Special  Fund,  have 
actually  been  relieved  of  practically  all  the  Medical 
Mission  expenditure.  That  is  the  testimony  of  ascer- 
tained fact,  and  it  should  prove  sufficient  to  silence 
any  remaining  doubt. 

It  may  be  interesting  to  the  reader  if  the  author 
here  gives  some  actual  figures  from  the  experience  of 
the  medical  auxiliary  with  which  he  has  been  officially 
connected  for  the  past  ten  years.  This  auxiliary  was 
established  by  the  Baptist  Missionary  Society  and  the 
Baptist  Zenana  Mission  in  1902,  and  at  the  end  of  the 
first  financial  year  in  March  1903,  an  income  of  £432 
had  been  received  for  the  Medical  Missions  of  the 
“ parent  ” societies.  It  was  obviously  the  day  of 
small  things.  But  the  work  of  educating  the  churches 
was  carried  forward,  and  the  appeal  for  financial  help 
pressed  home,  with  the  result  that  at  the  close  of  the 
tenth  financial  year  in  March  1913,  the  total  Income 
reached  the  figure  of  £11,760.  Moreover,  the  number  of 
medical  missionaries  had  been  increased  from  ten  to 
twenty-six ; the  number  of  hospitals  from  four  to 
thirteen,  and  a staff  of  nurse  missionaries  created, 
thirteen  in  number.  All  this,  let  it  be  observed, 
has  been  effected  without  adding  to  the  responsibilities 
of  the  General  Funds,  and  so  far  from  occasioning  the 
diversion  of  support,  the  fact  has  been  brought  out 


208 


THE  HOME  BASE 


that  the  average  yearly  deficiency  in  the  General  Funds 
of  the  parent  societies  has  been  less  for  the  ten 
completed  years  of  the  medical  auxiliary,  than  it  was 
for  the  corresponding  period  immediately  preceding 
them. 

The  medical  auxiliary  of  the  Church  Missionary 
Society  has  an  even  yet  more  encouraging  story  to  tell, 
and  the  support  that  can  thus  be  given  in  the  shape 
of  actual  experience,  to  the  working  of  a Medical 
Mission  Department,  should  certainly  commend,  with 
considerable  strength,  the  utility  of  its  financial 
function. 

(3)  Administrative. — The  work  that  requires  to  be 
done  in  sustaining  and  directing  the  labours  of  the 
medical  staff  on  the  field  is  naturally  an  inseparable 
part  of  the  service  falling  to  the  lot  of  the  Home  Base. 
Moreover,  it  is  a duty  which  grows  easily  out  of  these 
educative  and  financial  functions  which  have  just  been 
noticed.  Given  that,  interest  has  been  aroused,  and 
funds  collected,  it  is  of  importance  that  there  should  be 
sot  in  operation  suitable  machinery  for  administrative 
purposes.  Therein  is  found  an  additional  responsibility 
of  the  men  and  women  who  are  called  to  serve  at  the 
Home  end  of  the  enterprise. 

Now,  it  is  not  necessary  in  a book  of  this  kind,  to 
enter  at  any  length  into  a discussion  of  the  various 
aspects  of  Medical  Mission  administrative  work.  All 
that  comes  under  that  heading  will  be  thoroughly 
and  quickly  appreciated  by  those  who  are  associated 
with  the  conduct  of  any  missionary  society.  There 
are,  however,  two  points  upon  which,  in  our  opinion, 
the  greatest  stress  should  be  laid.  First,  that  the 
administration  of  Medical  Missions  should  be  carried 
on  by  a special  departmental  committee  appointed 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


209 


for  the  purpose,  and  having  a medical  secretary, 
and  second,  that  this  Committee  should  have  in  its 
membership  Christian  Medical  men  and  women  who  are 
truly  interested  in  Medical  Missions.  Here  again  it 
must  be  understood  that  we  are  referring  to  the 
administrative  work  of  Medical  Missions  in  connection 
with  one  of  the  general  missionary  societies. 

Regarding  the  first  of  the  above  two  points,  it  would 
almost  seem  as  if  it  were  superfluous  to  emphasise  such 
an  apparently  obvious  consideration.  And  yet  how 
few  amongst  the  missionary  societies,  in  Britain  at 
least,  have  delegated  the  matters  appertaining  to  their 
Medical  Missions  to  a special  committee  constituted 
for  that  section  of  the  work  ! To  an  astonishingly 
great  extent  the  administration  of  Medical  Missions 
has  been  in  no  sense  differentiated  from  the  manage- 
ment of  missions  in  general,  and  its  problems  left  to  the 
consideration  and  decision  of  bodies  who  can  lay  claim 
to  no  particular  intimacy  with  the  special  lines  along 
which  Medical  Missionary  service  must  run.  The 
result,  naturally,  can  hardly  be  calculated  to  pro- 
mote the  finest  leadership  in  Medical  Missions. 

Emphatically,  if  this  work  is  what  it  has  been  shown 
to  be — a highly  specialised  department  of  the  Missionary 
enterprise — then  for  its  effective  administration  there 
must  be  duly  and  wisely  appointed  committees  who 
can  make  it  their  particular  care  to  become  familiar 
with  the  varied  aspects  of  modern  Medical  Missions. 
We  plead  in  no  way  for  a dissociation  between  the 
administration  of  general  mission  work  and  that  of 
Medical  Missions — were  that  to  occur  it  would  be  a 
matter  of  profound  regret — but  rather  that  whilst  linked 
closely  and  intimately  with  all  the  other  deliberations 
connected  with  the  conduct  of  a missionary  society, 


o 


210 


THE  HOME  BASE 


there  should  nevertheless  be  a distinct  provision  made  for 
the  consideration  of  the  department  of  Medical  Missions. 

And  then,  as  an  essential  part  of  such  an  arrange- 
ment, it  would  appear  both  wise  and  expedient  to  have 
attached  to  any  Medical  Mission  committee  the  services 
of  a medical  secretary,  who  can  form  part  of  the  executive 
of  the  Society,  and  be  the  officer  specially  charged 
with  Medical  Mission  administrative  work.  When  it 
is  remembered  that  Medical  Missionaries  form  a band 
of  men  and  women  who  are  engaged  in  highly  technical 
work,  in  the  discharge  of  which  they  have  frequently  to 
look  for  assistance  from  home,  how  almost  axiomatic  it 
becomes  that  there  should  be  at  the  Home  Base  a medical 
secretary  who  can  rightly  interpret  their  needs  and  desires 
to  the  Committee,  and  be  their  agent,  so  to  speak,  so  far 
as  that  is  needed.  Furthermore,  since  one  of  the  duties 
that  must  naturally  devolve  upon  a Medical  Mission 
Committee  is  that  of  inquiring  into  the  professional 
fitness  of  Medical  Mission  candidates,  does  it  not  appear 
yet  more  incumbent  that  the  secretary  should  be  a 
medical  man  or  woman  ? He  (or  she)  can  get  into  early 
touch  with  prospective  candidates,  whilst  yet  they  are 
medical  students,  in  a way  that  no  non-medical  secretary 
can  ever  hope  to  do,  and,  by  so  doing,  help  to  guide 
them  along  the  best  line  of  preparation.  In  short, 
the  more  the  matter  of  this  administrative  work  is 
looked  into,  the  more  does  the  need  and  wisdom  of 
securing  a medical  secretary  for  the  Home  Base  become 
apparent.  And  seeing  that  there  are  not  a few  medical 
missionary  volunteers  who,  after  qualifying,  have,  for 
various  reasons,  been  debarred  from  going  to  the  field, 
it  would  seem  as  if  there  ought  not  to  be  any  insuperable 
difficulty  in  finding  those  who  might  serve  in  such  a 
capacity. 


211 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

The  second  point  above  alluded  to  is  one  with  which 
we  feel  assured  there  will  be  general  agreement,  viz., 
that  upon  Medical  Mission  committees  there  should  be 
as  large  a proportion  as  possible  of  Christian  medical 
men  and  women.  It  is  obvious  that  the  work  of  such 
a Committee  necessitates  and  presupposes  the  counsels 
of  these  experts.  Clearly  their  presence  upon  the 
Committee  is  a guarantee  that  due  and  adequate  regard 
will  be  paid  to  the  special  problems  and  methods  of 
Medical  Missions.  Moreover,  it  may  rightly  be  assumed 
that  the  missionary  interest  and  devotion  of  the 
medical  men  and  women  in  the  Home  Churches  can 
best  be  utilised  and  retained  by  securing  their  assist- 
ance, in  the  foregoing  way,  for  the  work  of  their  pro- 
fessional colleagues  on  the  Foreign  Field.  Conse- 
quently everything  points  to  both  the  need  and  desir- 
ability of  having  several  medical  members  upon  com- 
mittees appointed  to  administer  Medical  Missions,  and, 
the  fact,  mentioned  above,  that  there  are  to  be  found 
hindered  medical  volunteers  in  the  ranks  of  the  pro- 
fession at  home,  should  in  this  respect  also  afford  promise 
of  a sufficiency  of  material. 

And  now  in  summing  up  the  main  points  around 
which  our  consideration  of  the  Home  Base  of  Medical 
Missions  has  ranged,  we  find  that  they  may  all  be 
resolved  into  one  outstanding  plea  for  the  establish- 
ment of  Medical  Mission  Auxiliaries  in  connection  with 
those  missionary  societies  which  carry  on  medical 
work.  Whether  it  be  for  the  sake  of  the  interest  at 
home,  or  whether  it  is  a question  of  the  maintenance 
and  successful  prosecution  of  the  work  on  the  Field,  the 
argument  for  the  existence  of  specific  auxiliaries,  pledged 
to  the  cause  of  Medical  Missions,  seems  cumulative  in 
its  force.  The  teachings  of  experience  have  combined 


212  HOME  BASE  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


with  the  assumptions  of  theory  to  support  this  specialisa- 
tion at  the  Home  Base.  And  the  three  functions  of  a 
Medical  Mission  Auxiliary,  which  have  been  briefly 
sketched,  all  provide  a wealth  of  opportunity  for  any 
who  take  up  the  work  of  such  a Home  Department. 
Obviously  the  call  of  the  hour  is  thus  to  strengthen 
the  base  of  this  important  section  of  the  missionary 
enterprise,  and  we  cannot  but  believe  that  if  that  were 
done,  a fresh  and  conspicuous  advance  would  char- 
acteries  the  whole  field  of  Medical  Missions.  The 
present  is  pre-eminently  the  moment  for  the  friends  of 
Medical  Missions  to  band  themselves  together  for  a 
great  forward  crusade,  and  by  the  holy  bond  of  a common 
purpose,  to  strive  mightily  for  the  furtherance  of  this 
blessed  work.  With  all  the  earnestness  that  we  can  com- 
mand, we  therefore  plead  for  the  organisation  of  Medical 
Auxiliaries,  and  for  the  delegation  to  such  departments 
of  the  responsibility  for  creating  a wide  interest,  a 
generous  support,  and  an  efficient  administration  for 
the  agency  of  Medical  Missions. 


CHAPTER  XII 


THE  APPEAL  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 

“ We  came  into  the  world  to  do,  and  not  to  dream.  Let  us  then 
arouse  ourselves,  let  us  be  workmen  for  Christ.  Thore  is  a great  work 
to  be  done  for  Him  in  the  world  and  very  few  to  do  It.  Let  us  be 
among  those  few.” 

Throughout  the  previous  chapters  the  endeavour 
has  been  made  to  bring  into  prominence  the  obvious 
lessons  that  are  to  be  deduced  from  a review  of  the 
enterprise  of  Medical  Missions.  It  now  only  remains 
for  us  to  seek  to  interpret  in  a few  closing  words  what 
is  the  sum  of  those  teachings,  the  final  message  that 
this  great  work  would  bear  to  those  whose  lot  it  is  to 
“ tarry  by  the  stuff.”  That  Medical  Missions  have 
such  a message  none  can  doubt.  That  it  is  further  a 
message  which  the  Home  Churches  ought  to  hear,  and 
ponder  well,  there  can  be  no  room  for  question.  The 
whole  situation  of  the  work  is  simply  pregnant  with 
meaning,  and  unless  the  clock  is  to  be  put  back,  it  is 
imperative  that  there  should  be  an  attentive  ear  on  the 
part  of  the  Church  to  the  appeal  that  is  made. 

First  then,  we  submit,  Medical  Missions,  being  what 
they  are  and  possessing  the  qualities  that  they  do,  cannot 
be  neglected  without  harm  to  the  missionary  enterprise.  It 
is  impossible  to  avoid  this  conclusion.  The  very  genius 
of  their  ministry  is  the ’genius  of  missions.  To  deny 
Medical  Missions  a place  amongst  the  essential  forces 
of  Christian  Missions  would  be  to  do  a great  and  serious 

213 


214 


THE  APPEAL 


injury  to  the  spread  of  the  Gospel.  Moreover,  Medical 
Missions  are  the  inevitable  sequence  to  the  teachings 
of  Christian  morality,  and  to  exclude  them  from  the 
scope  of  missionary  effort  would  be  to  render  meaning- 
less certain  elemental  precepts  in  the  ethics  of  the 
New  Testament.  The  case  for  Christian  evidence  and 
the  cause  of  philanthropy  have  both  been  weakened 
owing  to  Medical  Missions  having  been  treated  in  the 
past  as  of  small  moment.  The  advance  of  the  Gospel 
amongst  Heathen,  and  particularly  amongst  Moham- 
medan nations  has  been  seriously  handicapped  through 
the  large  neglect  of  this  aspect  of  mission  work.  No 
fact  is  more  patent,  none  more  emphatic  than  that 
Medical  Missions  are  calculated  to  occupy  a place  of 
undeniable  importance  in  the  missionary  enterprise. 
And  the  message  that  is  borne  by  them  to  the  men 
and  women  who  have  to  stay  at  the  base  is  certainly 
the  clearest  possible  affirmation  of  the  truth  that 
Medical  Missions  cannot  be  overlooked  without  inflict- 
ing grievous  detriment  to  the  whole  cause  of  the  evangel. 

This  assertion  receives  the  greater  support  when  it 
is  remembered  how  almost  immeasurable  is  the  oppor- 
tunity that  Medical  Missions  present  to-day  to  the 
servants  of  Jesus  Christ.  No  one  who  has  given  time 
and  thought  to  a study  of  the  value  of  this  department 
of  missionary  effort  will  deny  the  existence  of  such 
an  open  door  in  nearly  every  direction.  Whether  it 
be  the  situation  created  by  the  thirst  for  education  in 
China,  or  that  afforded  by  reason  of  the  physical  neces- 
sities of  the  people  in  mission  lands,  or  again  that  pre- 
sented through  the  effete  superstitions  and  ignorant 
prejudices  of  Mohammedan  and  other  races,  it  is 
manifest,  beyond  all  reach  of  doubt,  that  Medical 
Missions  are  faced  in  the  present  age  with  magnificent 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


215 


opportunities  for  contributing  towards  the  fulfilment 
of  the  Saviour’s  last  commission.  To  confront  such 
a position  with  an  attitude  of  neglect  and  indifference 
would  be  to  act  with  lamentable  disregard  to  the 
Redeemer’s  interests. 

Moreover,  there  is  one  solemn  fact  that  is  to  be 
reckoned  with  in  this  relation.  The  opportunity  that 
exists  to-day  is  by  no  means  an  enduring  quantity.  It 
cannot  be  looked  upon  as  an  asset  which  will  stand 
equally  good  for  coming  generations.  As  a matter 
of  fact,  everything  points  the  other  way.  All  the 
indications  emphasise  the  transient  and  passing  char- 
acter of  the  opportunity.  The  doors  that  are  open 
to-day  are  not  fixed  in  that  position  : they  are  just 
ocsillating  on  their  hinges,  and  are  becoming  subjected 
from  the  inside  to  the  pressure  of  forces  which  are 
non-  or  anti-Christian.  The  one  thing  for  us  to  re- 
member is  that  the  existence  of  this  present  opportunity 
lays  upon  us  a present  responsibility,  which,  if  we  are 
to  be  true  to  Our  Lord,  we  must  do  our  utmost  to  dis- 
charge to  the  full.  It  is  pre-eminently  a case  where 
we  cannot  bequeath  an  opportunity  to  our  successors, 
nor  leave  to  them  our  duty  to  the  present  generation. 
In  the  providence  of  God  we  of  the  Christian  Church 
to-day  have  been  called  to  wield  the  instrument  of 
Medical  Missions  in  a situation  of  unparalleled  and 
critical  opportunity.  We  have  had  laid  upon  us  a 
distinct  responsibility  which  admits  of  no  evasion. 
We  have  been  charged  with  a great  trust  at  one  of  the 
crises  of  the  ages.  Can  it  be  thought  that  our  response 
to  that  opportunity,  that  responsibility,  that  trust, 
shall  be  anything  else  than  unquenchable  enthusiasm 
and  whole-hearted  personal  service  ? 

Then  in  the  second  place,  Medical  Missions,  having 


216 


THE  APPEAL 


the  work  to  do  which  they  have,  and  subjected  as  is  their 
'practice,  to  conditions  at  once  onerous  and  exacting, 
must  he  efficiently  supported.  There  can  hardly  be  any 
fact  to  be  deduced  from  a study  of  the  subject  of  more 
moment  than  this  necessity  of  adequate  support.  It 
ranks  pari  passu  with  the  obligation  just  noted  under 
the  previous  heading.  Indeed,  it  may  well  be  said  that 
unless  Medical  Missions  are  sustained  with  thorough- 
ness and  efficiency,  their  very  prosecution,  as  has  already 
been  seen  in  an  earlier  chapter,  is  scarcely  worth  the 
effort  put  into  it.  With  striking  unanimity  does  every 
voice  in  the  annals  of  the  enterprise  bear  testimony  to 
this  pre-eminent  need.  “ Send  us  Medical  Mission- 
aries,” they  cry,  “ but  only  if  you  mean  to  adequately 
support  them  in  their  work.” 

And  here  it  is  necessary  that  we  should  clearly  lay 
stress  upon  the  fact  that  by  support  we  do  not  refer 
alone  to  financial  aid.  That  is,  of  course,  called  for, 
and  in  much  larger  measure  than  heretofore,  but  by 
itself  it  is  by  no  means  everything.  To  justify  the  term 
efficient  support  there  must  be  understood  proper 
staffing  of  medical  stations,  adequate  provision  of 
buildings  and  equipment,  wise  and  sympathetic  ad- 
ministration, and  a careful  utilisation  of  all  available 
resources,  both  on  the  field  and  at  home.  All  this  is 
requisite,  not  one  item  is  superfluous,  if  there  is  to  be 
that  support  of  Medical  Missions  which  is  essential  to 
truly  effective  work.  Efficiency  in  this,  as  in  other 
callings,  is  the  secret  of  success,  and  it  can  only  be 
secured  by  a sufficient  measure  of  all-round  support. 

Does  this  sound  as  if  we  were  stipulating  for  ideal 
yet  impossible  conditions  ? Does  the  recapitulation 
of  such  terms  look  as  if  we  were  shutting  the  door  on 
Medical  Missions  ever  attaining  their  best  ? We  think 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


217 


not.  The  resources  of  the  Christian  Church  are  not 
so  depleted  nor  so  lacking  in  elasticity  as  to  afford  no 
hope  of  its  being  able  to  find  what  is  needed  for  the 
efficient  maintenance  and  development  of  this  phase  of 
its  foreign  work.  Christian  bodies  that  can  raise  big 
century  and  sustentation  funds  for  Home  work  and 
take  in  hand  large  schemes  for  social  service  are  not 
faced  with  the  impracticable  when  the  comparatively 
small  demands  of  their  Medical  Missions  are  formulated. 
We  are  persuaded  that  there  are  ample  resources  for 
all  that  may  be  needed  in  that  connection,  only,  and 
this  is  an  important  proviso,  those  resources  need 
organising.  The  various  functions  of  the  Home  Base 
all  require  to  be  brought  into  active  operation,  in  order 
that  the  desired  end  may  be  secured.  But  granted 
that  this  is  done,  and  carried  through  in  the  spirit  of 
prayer  and  faith,  we  have  nothing  but  confidence  as 
to  the  result. 

Moreover,  there  is  one  feature  of  the  work  of  Medical 
Missions  which  is  full  of  promise  and  encouragement, 
and  that  is  the  possibility  of  obtaining  a fair  measure 
of  local  financial  support  in  the  shape  of  fees  and  con- 
tributions from  patients  and  wealthy  natives.  It  has 
already  been  found  by  experience  that  local  receipts 
of  the  above  kind  can  be  reckoned  upon  as  a source 
of  revenue  at  practically  all  medical  stations,  which 
means  that  the  problem  of  support  is  not  one  that  is 
wholly  dependent  upon  the  Home  Base.  In  fact  in  not  a 
few  instances  the  local  expenses  of  a Medical  Mission 
have  been  largely  defrayed  by  contributions  obtained 
on  the  spot.  Accordingly  there  is  room  for  considerable 
hopefulness  concerning  the  future  support  of  this  work, 
and  the  only  point  that  must  again  and  again  be  insisted 
upon  is  the  essential  one  of  no  inefficiency  regarding 


218  THE  APPEAL 

which  the  message  of  Medical  Missions  is  most  clear 
and  definite. 

Passing  on  from  this  consideration,  we  find  in  the 
third  place  that  Medical  Missions  bear  witness  to  a great 
inadequacy  in  their  representation  on  the  Foreign  Field. 
This  is  one  of  the  saddest  facts  we  have  to  chronicle. 
The  existence  of  a state  of  need  is  sorrowful  enough, 
but  the  maintenance  of  that  state  when  there  is  a 
supply  to  meet  it  is  sadder  still.  And  that  is,  alas, 
exactly  the  condition  of  things  on  the  Mission  Field 
to-day  in  regard  to  Medical  Missions.  The  need  is  an 
undisguised  and  terrible  reality.  The  provision  to 
remove  it  is  pathetically  inadequate.  And  all  this 
in  an  age  when  there  was  never  more  medical  science, 
never  more  healing  skill ! Obviously  there  must  be 
something  wrong  with  the  distribution. 

Let  us  take  two  different  sets  of  facts  and  examine 
them  for  an  instant.  First,  as  to  the  number  of  doctors 
in  Great  Britain  and  those  holding  British  medical 
degrees  on  the  Mission  Field.  Taking  for  the  former 
figure  the  returns  published  in  the  “ Medical  Directory  ” 
for  the  current  year,  the  number  of  medical  practitioners 
in  the  British  Isles  is  seen  to  be  32, GOO,  which  means 
roughly  that  there  is  one  doctor  to  every  1380  of 
the  population.  For  the  latter  figure  the  statistics 
given  in  the  January  (1913)  issue  of  “ Medical  Missions 
at  Home  and  Abroad  ” will  serve  admirably  and  show 
us  that  there  are  435  medical  missionaries  practising 
abroad  with  British  medical  qualifications.  These  are 
labouring  in  26  different  fields,  and  many  of  them  must 
be  in  positions  where  their  “ medical  parish  ” totals 
over  a million — in  several  cases  yet  more.  What  a 
striking  disparity  this  reveals  between  the  “ Home  ” 
and  the  “ Foreign,”  in  regard  to  the  distribution  of 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  219 

medical  aid  ! Can  there  be  any  question  as  to  the 
need  of  the  latter  ? 

Then,  secondly,  as  to  the  proportion  of  medical 
missionaries  upon  the  staff  of  British  Missionary  Societies. 
There  are  to-day  in  round  figures  some  5700  mission- 
aries belonging  to  some  70  different  Societies,  carry- 
ing on  work  amongst  Heathen  and  Mohammedan 
peoples.  Amongst  this  number,  as  stated  above, 
there  are  435  medical  missionaries  which  means  in 
round  figures  that  in  every  thirteen  missionaries  there 
is  only  one  medical  missionary.  Now  when  it  is  re- 
membered how  wide  is  the  range  of  the  missionary 
value  of  Medical  Missions,  and  how  great  the  scope  for 
their  contribution  to  the  forces  of  the  Gospel,  is  it  not 
patent  that  the  foregoing  proportion  is  in  every  sense 
of  the  word  an  inadequate  one  ? Even  allowing  for 
the  obvious  fact  that  there  must  always  be  more  other 
missionaries  than  medical  missionaries,  can  it  ever  be  con- 
sidered that  the  present  minority  of  the  latter  affords 
sufficient  promise  of  compassing  what  is  needed  ? 

From  these  two  separate  points  of  view  it  is  therefore 
possible  to  arrive  at  one  and  the  same  conclusion  re- 
garding the  inadequacy  of  the  medical  missionary 
representation  on  the  Foreign  Field.  Indeed,  looked 
at  from  whatever  standpoint  may  be  selected  no  other 
finding  is  conceivable,  and  the  message  of  Medical 
Missions  resolves  itself  on  this  point  into  a clear  and 
unhesitating  plea  for  a strengthening  of  the  medical 
agency  in  the  work  of  Christian  missions.  The  influence 
of  the  day  when  Medical  Missions  were  treated  as  a 
side  issue  has  lasted  too  long.  They  are  supremely 
an  integral  element  in  the  propagation  of  the  Christian 
faith.  To  tolerate  a continuance  of  their  present  feeble 
share  in  the  enterprise  would  be  to  display  a singular 


220 


THE  APPEAL 


inaptness  in  reading  the  signs  of  the  missionary  situation. 
Let  the  Christian  Church  set  herself  with  renewed 
purpose  of  heart  to  rectifying  this  lack  in  its  efforts 
for  the  spread  of  the  Gospel,  and  the  cause  of  missions 
will  have  been  re-inforced  at  one  of  its  most  vital  and 
needy  points. 

And  now  turning  once  more  to  hear  what  further 
message  this  enterprise  has  to  convey,  we  find  finally 
that  Medical  Missions  embody  in  their  conception  and 
service  a summons  to  the  highest  type  of  young  Christian 
manhood  and  womanhood.  It  is,  we  suppose,  hardly 
possible  to  peruse  the  records  of  what  Medical  Mission- 
aries have  attempted  and  accomplished,  and  what  to- 
day numbers  of  them  are  still  achieving,  without  being 
stirred  with  the  thrill  of  a great  inspiration  that  would 
impel  one  to  desire  to  do  likewise.  The  unwearying 
devotion  that  is  everywhere  conspicuous  on  behalf  of 
the  suffering  and  the  outcast ; the  skill  and  patience 
that  are  so  freely  meted  out  to  those  in  need  of  help  and 
healing  ; the  willingness  for  sacrifice  that  characterises 
men  and  women  of  high  talent  as  they  toil  on  with 
scant  reward,  as  far  as  earth  is  concerned,  amongst  the 
loathsome  and  the  low  in  many  of  the  dark  places  of 
the  earth.  Who  can  come  into  contact  with  such  work, 
however  remotely,  without  being  filled  with  a holy 
emulation  of  these  servants  of  Christ,  and  stirred  with 
something  of  a like  passion  ! 

Then  when  the  mind  wanders  to  the  appealing  needs 
that  cry  aloud  for  Medical  Missions,  the  conditions  of 
distress  and  sorrow  that  present,  on  so  large  a scale, 
the  very  field  for  this  ministry,  how  can  there  be  any 
hesitancy  in  acknowledging  to  the  full  the  summons 
that  is  borne  across  the  seas  for  more  workers  in 
this  vineyard  ? All  that  is  continually  being  told  by 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


221 


medical  missionary  after  medical  missionary  adds 
force  to  the  undoubted  fact  of  the  urgency  of  the  call 
for  the  consecration  of  many  more  lives  to  this  aspect 
of  Christian  service. 

Now  of  necessity  this  summons  comes  to  the  young 
men  and  women  of  the  churches  in  particular.  For 
theirs  is  the  opportunity  of  life  service,  theirs  the 
capacity  for  responding  to  the  great  call  ere  it  is  too 
late.  And  the  point  we  would  here  emphasise  is  that 
this  appeal  is  one  which  is  particularly  directed  to  the 
highest  type  of  young  Christian  manhood  and  woman- 
hood. The  magnitude  of  the  work,  the  demands  it 
makes  for  the  best  of  brain  and  heart,  the  qualities 
of  sound  judgment  and  resourcefulness  that  it  necessi- 
tates, the  grasp  of  scientific  detail  and  accurate  know- 
ledge that  it  requires,  and  the  capacity  for  leadership 
which  is  pre-eminently  the  attribute  of  every  successful 
Medical  Missionary,  all  mean  that  there  are  wanted  for 
this  service  trained  and  disciplined  minds,  fitted  by 
nature  and  by  grace  for  work  that  is  above  the  ordinary. 
Medical  Missions  present  a summons  not  for  the  lives 
and  talents  which  it  is  thought  might  be  spared,  but 
for  those  which  everything  seems  to  say  are  needed 
here  at  home.  The  young  men  and  women  who  have 
had  the  advantage  of  a sound  and  liberal  education, 
and  who  to  that  have  added  a training  in  medicine,  and 
who  have  manifested  powers  that  would  mark  them 
out  for  positions  of  responsibility,  if  they  remained  in 
the  work  of  the  Home  Church,  they  are  the  ones  to 
whom  the  call  and  message  of  Medical  Missions  sounds 
most  clearly  to-day. 

And  we  must  here  confess  to  not  a little  disappoint- 
ment that  so  few  of  that  type  seem  disposed  to  take 
up  Medical  Missions  as  a career,  or,  as  it  should  be  said, 


222 


THE  APPEAL 


fail  to  respond  to  the  call  of  God,  and  to  the  voice  of 
human  need.  It  has  been  the  privilege  of  the  author 
to  spend  a large  part  of  the  past  decade  in  speaking  on 
Medical  Missions  throughout  Great  Britain,  and  one 
of  the  things  that  has  struck  him  most  is  the  number 
of  the  sons  and  daughters  of  good  families  who  are 
apparently  inclined  to  take  up  any  and  every  calling 
save  the  ministry  of  the  Church  at  home  and  abroad. 
Many  of  these  are  adopting  medicine  as  a profession, 
and  the  question  has  again  and  again  suggested  itself 
— Why  should  they  not  give  themselves  to  Medical 
Missions  ? We  are  aware,  of  course,  that  such  a step 
means  a sacrifice,  both  to  them  and  to  their  parents, 
but  is  there  anything  in  the  world  worth  doing  that 
does  not  mean  sacrifice,  and  is  it  not  in  the  very 
essence  of  Christianity  that  “ ‘ God  the  Father  ’ gave,” 
and  “ ‘ Christ  the  Son  ’ offered  Himself  ” ? 

We  pass  on  this  summons  of  Medical  Missions  to 
the  parents  and  families  of  our  Christian  homes 
throughout  the  land.  With  them,  we  are  assured,  lies 
the  possibility  of  giving  such  an  answer  as  shall  solve 
for  the  present  generation  the  problem  created  by  the 
deficiency  of  medical  missionary  candidates.  Surely 
they  will  not  withhold  the  consecration  of  their  best ! 
Chief  amongst  the  vocations  of  earth  may  be  placed 
the  noble  calling  of  Medical  Missions,  unique  in  its 
potentialities  for  doing  good,  and  achieving  a twofold 
service  for  God  and  humanity.  Sublime  in  its  con- 
ception, and  altruistic  in  its  beneficent  mission,  where 
can  there  be  found  a finer  life  work  for  the  sons  and 
daughters  of  the  Church  ? Shall  it  ever  be  that  by 
turning  a deaf  ear  to  such  a call,  any  of  those  will 
one  day  forfeit  the  Master’s  “ Well  done,  good  and 
faithful  servant.  . . . Inasmuch  as  ye  did  it  unto 


OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS  223 

one  of  the  least  of  these  my  brethren,  ye  did  it  unto 
Me  ” ? 

And  so  we  bring  to  a close  this  all  too  brief  and  im- 
perfect sketch  of  the  glorious  enterprise  of  Medical 
Missions.  It  cannot  be  pretended  that  the  subject 
has  been  more  than  touched,  yet  it  is  hoped  that  in 
some  small  way  what  has  been  written  may  prove  of 
use  in  deepening  interest  in  this  aspect  of  Missionary 
work.  Three  things  would  the  author  ask  of  his  Christian 
readers  ere  they  close  their  perusal  of  these  pages. 

First  of  all,  that  they  would  each  and  all  resolve 
to  give  Medical  Missions  a greater  place  in  their  prayers 
than  the  subject  has  ever  before  occupied.  Particularly 
that  they  would  remember  in  such  a way  the  medical  mis- 
sionaries and  nurses  (by  name,  if  known)  of  the  Society 
with  which  they  are  connected,  and  if  it  should  happen 
that  none  of  these  have  yet  been  added  to  its  staff,  pray 
that  this  may  be  brought  about  speedily.  Also  that  if 
they  themselves,  having  life  before  them,  might  take 
up  training  and  offer  themselves  for  Medical  Mission 
service,  that  God  will  clearly  reveal  His  will  and  make 
both  them  and  their  parents  willing  to  fall  in  line  with 
His  purpose. 

Secondly,  that  every  reader  would  make  it  his 
earnest  endeavour  to  influence  and  interest  all  and 
whomsoever  he  may,  whether  it  be  a church,  a Sunday 
school,  a Bible  class,  a young  peoples’  society,  a circle 
of  friends  or  Christian  medical  students,  or  at  any 
rate  some  individual,  in  the  work  of  Medical  Missions. 
This  may  be  done  in  various  ways,  in  part  :t  is  hoped 
by  the  utilisation  of  material  contained  in  these  pages, 
but  whilst  the  method  adopted  may  differ,  there  can 
be  no  doubt  as  to  the  value  of  seeking  to  help  the 
work  herein  described. 


224  THE  APPEAL  OF  MEDICAL  MISSIONS 


Thirdly,  that  each  reader  would  decide  to  have  some 
practical  share  in  the  support  of  Medical  Missions. 
Many  already,  we  do  not  doubt,  will  have  taken  that  step, 
but  perhaps  they  may  feel  led  to  take  a larger  share.  And 
in  the  case  of  the  many  who  have  never  yet  indicated 
any  special  practical  sympathy  with  Medical  Missions, 
and  who  might  do  so,  it  is  earnestly  hoped  that  from 
this  moment  onward  they  will  liberally  subscribe  to 
the  support  of  the  Medical  Missions  of  their  own  Society. 
Enough  has  been  said  to  make  clear  the  necessity 
for  such  support,  and  all  that  need  here  be  added 
is  to  say  that  the  funds  in  aid  of  Medical  Missions  are 
without  exception  very  inadequate,  and  unable  to 
allow  of  such  a response,  as  could  be  wished,  being  made 
at  present  to  the  clamant  appeals  for  the  more  efficient 
development  of  this  ministry  of  healing.  Need  we  recall 
the  fact  that  the  Christ  who  gave  the  commission  to 
“ Preach  and  Heal  ” also  laid  upon  His  disciples  the 
injunction,  “ Freely  ye  have  received,  freely  give.” 

May  Our  blessed  Lord  so  fill  us  with  His  Holy  Spirit, 
and  so  constrain  us  with  the  memory  of  His  undying 
Love,  that,  like  Him,  we  shall  be  “ moved  with  com- 
passion ” as  we  hear  of  those  needy  suffering  multitudes 
across  the  seas,  and  count  it  our  blessed  privilege  to 
go  ourselves,  if  that  be  possible ; if  not,  to  send  forth 
others,  as  He  once  did,  to  heal  their  sick. 


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